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Mobility Portal, Spain
Date: February 4, 2025
Inés Platini
By Inés Platini
Spain
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What is the Spanish sector demanding regarding the lack of review of the DGT’s environmental labels?

The DGT’s environmental labels, designed to define which vehicles can access Low Emission Zones (LEZ), contain errors, such as the allocation of the "0" label to plug-in hybrids with a range of 40 km. Will the changes requested by the sector be implemented in 2025?
What is the sector demanding regarding the lack of review of the DGT’s environmental labels?

The environmental labels of the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT), in force since 2016, are described by some actors in the sector as “a disaster”, which has led to requests for their review.

In 2024, the agency said it would evaluate a restructuring of the labeling system for new vehicles.

However, when consulted by Mobility Portal España, they assured: “No modification of the current system is planned in the short or medium term.”

What changes are experts calling for?

Miguel Ángel Blázquez, R&D technician in the CASE Mobility department at Cesvimap, points out: “The intention to restructure is correct and necessary since, in certain cases, it generates inequalities.” 

One of these cases is the “ECO” label, which groups together various technologies, and, according to Blázquez, not all of them contribute equally to the reduction of polluting emissions.

In this regard, he explains that hybrid vehicles, capable of running in electric mode, should not be compared with micro-hybrids whose electrification is marginal or with compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles.

Miguel Angel Blazquez (Cesvimap).

Another problem is the “ZERO” label, awarded to plug-in hybrids with more than 40 kilometers of autonomy. 

Although these cars do not face restrictions in Low Emission Zones (LEZ), there is no guarantee that they will use their electric mode when entering these areas. 

“Currently, there is no regulation that requires these vehicles to operate in 100% electric mode within the ZBE,” he says. 

He added: “We cannot guarantee that its contribution to reducing emissions will be the same as that of a 100% electric car.” 

The Stellantis Group has a system that integrates a light in the area of ​​the interior rearview mirror, so that when the plug-in hybrid is in electric mode, this light turns on. 

However, this is not regulated.

It should be noted that, according to Blázquez, in the case of cars that have hybridization, the high voltage battery is one of the main allies in reducing polluting gases.

“Therefore, if the vehicle’s health status (SOH) is not optimal, its autonomy in electric mode will be lower and its polluting emissions will increase considerably,” he explains.

This aspect is also not considered when establishing labelling systems.

One of the possible solutions proposed by the specialist to correct the current inequality in environmental labeling systems is to assign them based on the actual polluting emissions of each vehicle.

“In this way, it would be more effective to help improve air quality in the most critical areas,” he said.

Other sectors also request a review of labels

The National Association of Two-Wheeled Vehicle Companies (ANESDOR) highlights the limitations of labelling for motorcycles and light vehicles, particularly following the introduction of the Euro 5+ regulations. 

According to the report, approximately 850,000 cars are in a “legal vacuum” because the regulations on labels have not been updated since their implementation.

José María Riaño, Secretary General of ANESDOR.

“The Royal Decree that regulates them has not been updated since it came into force and in this time no new Euro tourism stages have been launched, but there have been new L category stages,” explains José María Riaño, Secretary General of the entity. 

This has resulted in an unequal allocation of labels for motorcycles, which receive the “C” category despite having emissions levels comparable to passenger cars with an “ECO” label. 

Riaño emphasises the urgency of resolving this problem in order to provide legal certainty to affected users.

Since their introduction, environmental labels have been a tool to regulate access to LEZs.

This has become especially relevant since 2023, when these zones became mandatory in municipalities with more than 50,000 inhabitants. 

In this context, Carlos Bravo, an environmental consultant, points out that the current labeling system is “a disaster” and proposes changing them. 

Aurelio Suero, a senior automotive consultant, describes the scheme as “obsolete and without a clear limit on emissions.”

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