Brussels low emission zone takes the next steps

The Brussels-Capital Region is implementing its low-emission zone according to plan, said the Region’s Minister for Environment Céline Fremault at a Brussels parliament meeting. The zone has been set up for the entire region and entered into effect in January 2018.

In order to step forward to enforcement, number plate recognition cameras have been installed.  Cameras check both Belgian and foreign-registered cars for compliance with the emission standards which have been required since 01 July, this year. The low-emission zone prohibits all vehicles without any Euronorm standard and those only meeting Euronorm 1. Now, vehicles violating the emission standard will receive a written warning, but from 01 October, consequences are getting tougher: entering the city with a vehicle below Euronorm 2 will receive a fine of  €350.

To give drivers a warning, 300 road signs have been set up that tell drivers coming into the Brussels Region on entering a low-emission zone. The city has also installed 176 cameras with 60 more to come before financial penalties begin. The 19 communes of the region and the Privacy Commission – the Federal Authority governing data protection in Belgium -  have already granted approval for using the images in the enforcement of the low-emission zone rules.