Daimler home state favours banning old diesel cars from cities
The government of southern Germany鈥檚 state of Baden-W眉rttemberg, home to carmaker Daimler, wants to ban old diesel cars in cities, report Josef Kelnberger und Max H盲gler in S眉ddeutsche Zeitung. Only a 鈥�blue badge鈥� could reduce nitrogen oxide levels below legal limits, said Green state premier Winfried Kretschmann, who heads a coalition government of Greens and Angela Merkel鈥檚 Christian Democrats in the state鈥檚 capital Stuttgart.
Kretschmann said he would start a corresponding initiative in Germany鈥檚 upper house of parliament, the Bundesrat, and hoped for support from the car industry. He said a blue badge would show that diesel engines can be clean, and would also quicken technological development. He said diesel engines would be needed as a 鈥渓ow-emission鈥� bridge technology and that 50,000 jobs in Baden-W眉rttemberg alone depended on the technology. Daimler said it was open to the blue badge, as long as the transition period was sufficiently long.
Read the article in German .
For background, read the new 威力彩玩法 dossier The Energiewende and German carmakers.