Frankfurt get court-ordered diesel ban

Frankfurt has received a court-ordered ban on diesel after regularly exceeding pollution limits.

The ban, issued by Wiesbaden court, will begin in February 2019 and will apply to diesel cars that meet Euro 4 and older emission standards. This could see over 60,000 cars off the road. It is part of a series of measures to reduce Germany’s air pollution.

This will result in two thirds of buses being affected. This has prompted the city to appeal to Angela Merkel’s Government for financial help to deal with the repercussions.

However, from September, the ban will become more extensive and will apply to all vehicles that do not meet the 2014 EU emissions standard.

The city is notorious for its diesel consumption, with diesel vehicles making up 47 per cent of traffic, according to German Newspaper, Süddeutsche Zeitung.

The court order was campaigned for by environmental group Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) and it becomes the third German city to introduce the ban.

Judge Rolf Hartmann said: "The driving ban is necessary because all other measures considered by the state will not lead to a significant reduction of nitrogen dioxide emissions in an appropriate time.”

Germany frequently struggles to remain under the European Union pollution limit. Hartmann added “We need to understand that this is about a threat to our health.”

This follows news that German car company Mercedes-Benz have revealed their new electric car, EQC.