The Department of Road Transport of the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works published a call for comments on the Bill entitled "The Law on the Determination of Special Measures for the Reduction of Atmospheric Pollutants and Greenhouse Gases from Road Transport of 2022" from 14 January 2022. Stakeholders have until 4 March 2022 to send in their submissions.
The bill that has been put out for public consultation concerns additional action to promote relevant reform by adopting legislation that will enable measures to be specified to reduce the environmental impact of transport.
The bill that has been put out for public consultation concerns additional action to promote relevant reform by adopting legislation that will enable measures to be specified to reduce the environmental impact of transport. This Law attempts to create a clear legislative framework that will facilitate the adoption of measures to reduce emissions from road transport and improve the quality of life. Such measures may include:
- the designation of low- or zero-emission areas or roads,
- the setting of a date beyond which the registration of vehicles of specified categories that do not meet the anti-pollution technology standards and/or the carbon dioxide (CO2) emission limits to be set will not be allowed,
- the designation of transport activities to be carried out exclusively by zero- or very low-emission vehicles, and
- the setting of specific traffic regulations in certain areas of the country,
- the setting of a date beyond which the registration of vehicles of specified categories that do not meet the anti-pollution technology standards and/or the carbon dioxide (CO2) emission limits to be set will not be allowed,
- the designation of transport activities to be carried out exclusively by zero- or very low-emission vehicles, and
- the setting of specific traffic regulations in certain areas of the country.
In addition, for purposes of promoting sustainable mobility, this bill also provides for the possibility of establishing an obligation to include, in advertisements or other means of promoting the purchase or use of conventionally fuelled vehicles, content promoting alternative modes of transport, such as walking, cycling and the use of public passenger transport.
The promotion of this Law was deemed necessary, taking into account the fact that in Cyprus road transport is responsible for about 50% of the greenhouse gas emissions related to activities not included in the Emissions Trading Scheme. In addition, road transport is responsible for a large proportion of emissions of air pollutants (atmospheric), such as nitrogen oxides, particulate matter and micro-particles, etc., which cause serious health problems and reduce the quality of life, especially for the inhabitants of the place where they are emitted.
In order to achieve the targets set by the Government in relation to the reduction of greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions, the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works is called upon to assist by undertaking initiatives that will contribute to the transition to sustainable mobility and green growth. In this context, parallel actions are being promoted to provide positive incentives to reduce emissions from road transport. Among these, the Grant Schemes for the Purchase of Electric Vehicles and the Decommissioning of Hazardous Vehicles and the Granting of Incentives for Alternative, Low Emission Modes of Transport are being progressively implemented. The two schemes are part of the Recovery and Resilience Plan "Cyprus_Tomorrow" and their implementation so far is considered successful.
(MKY)
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