One of the advantages associated with electric and hybrid cars, beyond what is implicit in their technology, consumption and environmental impact, are the administrative bonuses that come with them and that imply certain benefits for users. In Europe, these cars carry a special environmental badge, those known as ZERO and ECO labelswhich allow, among other things, unrestricted access to low emission zones and free parking in regulated zones.
Now some European countries are beginning to remove some of those advantages. And the truth is that it has been necessary for a long time due to the injustices implicit in them. Not so much the ZERO labels, but the ECO ones, which allow plug-in hybrid vehicles, but really polluting ones, such as some supercars with more than 500 CV, to enjoy advantages that, strictly speaking, they should not have.
Farewell to environmental advantages in Paris and Lyon
The first to kick off has been France, which has directly eliminated the free parking benefits enjoyed by electrical and hybridsand especially within large cities with restrictions on movement, such as Paris.
Other cities, such as Lyon, have gone a step further, and in addition to limiting the aforementioned advantage, have a bill underway that penalizes the parking of older cars with an extra tax. heavy. Precisely, one of the characteristics of many plug-in and electric hybrids of the SUV type.
At the moment, these types of regulations are beginning to be deployed in France, a country that is especially committed to electric cars, with many associated advantages. In Spain, the DGT has not yet reviewed the status of the ZERO and ECO labels, but the truth is that in the case of plug-in hybrids, a more detailed review has been necessary for some time. Especially to the aforementioned sports. Plug-in SUVs with combustion engines that pollute even more than basic utilities that are prohibited from driving in cities like Madrid.
At a local level, in Spain, some municipalities, such as Gijón, have just announced that they are also saying goodbye to the environmental label, although in this case it is not specifically for electric vehicles, but also for all types of vehicles. Until now, the environmental label was mandatory to park and drive around the city.
However, in the end the DGT will have the last word, which has not yet announced whether in Spain they will also begin to review the ZERO and ECO labels.