Driving and Environmental Zones!

I've always had to buy a permit to get into Switzerland and to drive the 4 lane highways of Austria. And I know to avoid the ZTL's of many Italian cities, but their signage is pretty easy to see.
But I never bought any permit for Germany. I wonder if that was a city parking permit? Sounds like an Italian ZTL type situation.

Sounds very much like an Umweltzone. https://uk.diplo.de/uk-en/02/A-Z/environmental-zones/2487904

@david- The environment permit is different from the vignettes needed to drive on the highways. On a future trip I’ll be going to Germany so that permit/certificate was one small reason we’re flying into Frankfurt. I downloaded the Green-Zone app to check for areas that might be of concern since we’re also going into France.

Since I don’t live there, I’m not certain if the certificates are standardized across the EU, i.e., a certain pollutant class vehicle certificate from France would be the same as one from Germany or Netherlands. Maybe one of our European residents will know and comment. Badger’s link is Germany specific but is exactly what the OP is referring to.

I usually rent a car when in Europe so thank you @Christine for bringing this up and @badger for the link to useful information. I generally avoid the big cities when driving. I have bought the toll stickers for Switzerland and Austria. I have also been able to avoid ZTLs in Italy. Milan's ZTL was clearly marked back in 2010 (or 2012). Maybe @Lee is correct. Taking the train in Germany is the best way to get around.

yes I think part of the confusion here is the vignette you need to drive in Switzerland, not at all related to ZTLs and all the new restrictions. you should check out a map of London sometime, there are warnings all over it about the various zones.

Also just as an aside, most people would say unless there's a compelling reason to not drive in Europe, when the trains are so cool (and greener, according to most).

The issue for my son-in-law was that his Swiss rental did not have a Germany-specific low emissions tag. Even though the car met low emissions standards, in Germany low-emissions areas you must have a German tag. He was literally on the road approaching Regensburg when they figured it out (saw something on the hotel parking website which was a last minute selection). Apparently you can order a tag in advance, or "possibly" get assistance from a car dealership. Tags are not available at gas stations. Odd.... I guess I have never paid attention to all the tags on the windshield of my Uber, or Taxi... I'll bet that's what those are. I'll look a little closer my next trip. But again, I think it's interesting how little attention this gets from Rick.

@Christine - thanks for bringing this up. I just looked up what I’d need to do if I needed to order one for France, since I’ll be renting in Germany. In short, once picking up the rental car I can order it online. Obviously it will be mailed to my home address so would not arrive in time. According to Enterprise, “Proof of payment of this sticker, combined with the rental agreement, is sufficient for when you are checked.” My guess is the same should be true for Germany too. The French sticker is 3,11€ and shipping another 1,50€.

To be precise, the OP is referring to a specific pollution certificate completely unrelated to the vignettes needed to drive in countries like Switzerland and Austria. Some countries have few environmental zones while others have a lot. France has a bunch of them that cover the majority of cities and countryside while Germany’s tend to be around cities and town. Spain has very few. If you don’t have a certificate you may not be able to drive in an area depending on pollution levels while there.

In the Green Zone app you can select an environmental zone and it will tell you whether you can drive there without the pollution certificate based on car information you input into the app. The app shows a zone’s current status based in CO2, O3, NO2, and PM10 levels. The one that seems to affect to overall access rights most is CO2. Access can change multiple times a day.

Regarding driving in Europe, unfortunately trains and busses frequently can’t get one to very remote areas in a timely fashion, or scheduling makes using public transportation impractical. I will agree that if only going from city to city and not taking day trips from it, public transportation makes sense. If one’s wants to go to remote, less visited areas, or want to see a few places on a single day trip, a rental car makes more sense. It all depends on what you plan to see and where it is.

The environmental zones are multiplying and aren't related to the ZTLs which have been around for years in Italy or the toll vignettes which have also been for years in Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia....

France requires a Crit-Air sticker for entry into many cities.

Germany as a different one - an Umweltplakette. I have both on my car.

Belgium has online registration for several cities including Antwerpen, Gent and Brussel.

For all of these you need the number plate and description of your car, and many for an online registration require the car documents and numbers off them.

UK now has online registration in Oxford, schemes either coming or in operation in Cambridge, Manchester, Nottingham and others. Each needs to be researched independently and they all have different arrangements.

If you intend to drive, better check - expensive penalties if not.

Then there is the mother of all zones - the so called London Congestion Charge, and its baby brothers the LEZ and the ULEZ (Low Emission Zone and Ultra Low Emission Zone). Many of the London Boroughs also charge different prices for street parking depending on the fuel in the vehicle - Hydrogen, Electric, Petrol, Diesel, and hybrids. Not that cars previously exempt like petrol electric hybrids - like Prius - are no longer exempt in some places.

The London Zones, which overlap and have nothing to do with TfL Tube zones, but do not overlap completely, have grown bigger and bigger and now have reached the North Circular and South Circular are extending towards the M25. Huge.

getting tricky isn't it?

Definitely makes renting a car in one country and driving through others much more difficult.

@Nick - Thanks for that information. Hopefully the rental car will comes with the appropriate sticker.