ZBE in Barcelona: everything you need to know about the traffic-free zone (2023)
The ZTL of Barcelona is updated to add measures that benefit lower income sectors of the population. Likewise, the number of authorizations for the occasional use of vehicles and for professionals close to retirement age who use the vehicle for work is extended.
Author: "Barcelona: Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes" by Jorge Franganillo, licensed under CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/> , Via Wikimedia Commons. source
Thousands of trips are made daily by car in the city of Barcelona: these are made not only by the city's residents, but also by tourists and inhabitants living around the metropolitan area who seek access to the city for work and leisure. This has led to a growing problem of traffic congestion that affects not only the environment, but also the quality of life of citizens.
To address this situation, the Barcelona City Council has chosen to implement measures such as the Low Emission Zone (ZBE) with the aim of reducing the pollution caused by polluting gases from cars.
Would you like to know what measures are being implemented to reduce pollution and promote a more sustainable mobility? Do you want to know what are the new updates? Then don't miss this article about the Low Emission Zones (ZBE) in Barcelona.
What is the LEZ?
The Low Emission Zone is an urban area in which measures are applied to reduce pollution caused by mass commuting in large cities and improve air quality.
The most polluting vehicles that do not comply with European emissions regulations are prohibited from circulating within the LEZ during working days (Monday to Friday, from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm). This regulation is applied in all municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants. These means of transport cannot circulate in Barcelona, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Sant Adrià del Besòs and part of Esplugues de Llobregat and Cornellà de Llobregat during the established schedules.
The districts not included in the ZBE are the neighborhood of Vallvidrera, Tibidabo i les Planes and the industrial Zona Franca.
It is important to keep in mind that vehicles that do not comply with the ZBE requirements may receive financial penalties for circulating in the restricted zones.
What are the new measures for the ZBE in Barcelona (2023)?
During 2023, new measures have been added for the Low Emission Zone (ZBE) in Barcelona with the aim of offering better circulation options to the inhabitants and tourists who come to the city and surrounding areas. Below, we explain all the new measures that you should take into account to avoid infractions.
The Low Emission Zone (ZBE) of Barcelona extends its scope to Badalona. From now on, there will be more streets and neighborhoods where traffic restrictions will be applied.
The number of authorizations for occasional use of vehicles and for professionals close to retirement age who use their transport for work is extended.
Vehicles without a DGT environmental sticker, including historic and classic vehicles, will have a maximum of 24 one-day authorizations available to them. This means that they will only be able to circulate in the ZBE of Barcelona for a maximum of 24 days a year.
The categories of singular vehicles without environmental badge that can apply for authorization to circulate in the metropolitan ZBE are extended.
The vehicles that can apply for authorization to circulate in the ZBE have to meet the following requirements:
Persons who can prove an annual income of less than twice the IPREM increased according to the number of members of the family unit. The Indicador Público de Renta de Efectos Múltiples (IPREM) is an index used in Spain as a reference for the granting of aid, subsidies or unemployment benefits.
Professionals who have a maximum of 5 years left before retirement.
People who can prove the purchase of a vehicle that meets the established requirements until the new vehicle is delivered to them.
The ZBE in Barcelona and all you need to know
One of the big questions shared by most drivers is: can my vehicle enter the ZBE? The answer is simple: the only vehicles that cannot circulate in the ZBE in Barcelona are those that do not have an environmental badge from the DGT: gasoline cars registered before 2000 (prior to the Euro 3 standard), diesel cars registered before 2006 (prior to the Euro 4 standard) and motorcycles and mopeds registered before 2003 (prior to the Euro 2 standard). Outside the established hours, they will be allowed to circulate in the zone.
Vehicles with environmental label 0 Emissions, ECO, C and B; will be able to circulate in the ZBE during the established schedules.
DGT environmental labels
The environmental labels of the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) are a measure that has been implemented in Spain to promote more sustainable mobility and reduce air pollution in cities. These labels classify vehicles according to their environmental impact and award a badge indicating their level of efficiency in terms of pollutant emissions.
These are the types of environmental labels:
0 Emissions: battery electric vehicles (BEV), range-extended electric vehicles (REEV), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) with a range of 40 km or fuel cell vehicles.
ECO: plug-in electric vehicles with a range of less than 40 km, non-plug-in hybrids (HEV), vehicles powered by natural gas and gas (CNG and LNG) or liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). They must meet the criteria of the C label.
C: Gasoline passenger cars and light vans registered from January 2006 and diesel from 2014. Vehicles with more than 8 seats and heavy-duty both gasoline and diesel, registered since 2014.
B: Gasoline passenger cars and light vans registered since January 2001 and diesel from 2006. Vehicles with more than 8 seats and heavy vehicles, both diesel and gasoline, registered since 2005.
Polluting cars and authorizations
The Metropolitan Registry is an AMB service that allows the most polluting vehicles to be registered in order to request daily circulation authorizations. This allows them to circulate in any low-emission zone of the metropolis of Barcelona with a single procedure.
The types of authorizations you can apply for are as follows:
- Daily authorizations
- Persons with reduced mobility
- Emergency and essential services
- Foreign vehicles
- Illness or disability
- Periodic medical treatment
- Special vehicles
- Dynamic tests in workshops
- Moratorium on replacement
- Activities with municipal authorization Low-income persons * Professionals close to retirement age
- Professionals close to retirement age
ZBE requirements for foreign cars (2023)
Vehicles registered outside Spain are not classified according to the criteria of the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) environmental label, that is why all foreign vehicles must register in the Metropolitan Registry to circulate in the Low Emission Zone.
The requirements are as follows:
- Motorcycles and mopeds (category L) classified as Euro 2 or higher.
- Cars (M1) classified as electric, gasoline Euro 3 or higher, or diesel Euro 4 or higher.
- Trucks (N2, N3), buses and coaches (M2, M3): electric, diesel Euro 4 or higher.
The owners of vehicles that do not have an environmental badge comparable to that of the DGT will have to register as foreign vehicles that access sporadically. In this way they will be able to use up to 24 authorizations over a maximum of one year.
Vehicles in urgent need of an authorization can also apply directly for registration as daily authorizations for foreign vehicles.
What are the sanctions of the ZBE in Barcelona (2023)?
The penalty for non-compliance with the regulation is equivalent to a payment of 200 euros, and for pollution the penalty is increased by 30%. Therefore, it is important to inform yourself about the restrictions that are part of the ZBE before driving your car in Barcelona.
