Zurich tops European cities fighting air pollution

Zurich has taken top position in the Sootfree Cities ranking which graded the efforts of 23 major European cities to improve air quality. The Swiss city finished first due to a policy mix which includes a strong commitment to reduce pollution from vehicles, the promotion of cleaner forms of transport and low levels of air pollution.

Both in Zurich and runner-up, Copenhagen, the number of cars has been substantially reduced with tight restrictions in place on diesel cars, trucks and construction machines. At the same time public transport, cycling and walking have been greatly expanded.

Vienna and Stockholm finished in third and fourth place, while the winner of the previous edition of the ranking, Berlin, came in at number five. At the other end of the ranking, Lisbon and Luxembourg finish in the last two places for tackling air pollution in only a “half-hearted manner”.

“Our ranking shows that cities across Europe have been actively fighting air pollution because of the EU’s air quality standards,” said Arne Fellermann, Transport Policy Officer at BUND/Friends of the Earth Germany that produced the ranking. “Ninety percent of Europeans living in cities today are still breathing unhealthy air, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Vienna or Berlin have either met, or are due to meet, the EU limit values within the next two years. Zurich has already progressed well beyond the EU’s norms.”

According to the European Environment Bureau, cities in Europe are nevertheless hampered by inadequate action at EU level to fight air pollution.

“Cities can do a lot to improve air quality, but they are left exposed to some pollution they can’t control,” explained Louise Duprez, Senior Policy Officer for Air Pollution at the Bureau. “This includes pollution which comes from outside the city, like emissions from agriculture or industry. The EU must be more ambitious if it wants to prevent repeats of last week’s deadly smog.”

The Sootfree Cities ranking evaluated 23 of Europe’s cities in nine transport-related categories including the promotion of sustainable transport, traffic management, public procurement and economic incentives, such as congestion charges and parking. The ranking also took into account how successful each city had been at reducing the pollution at its urban traffic stations.