Stockholm will become the first capital city in Europe — and the world — to ban gasoline and diesel powered cars from its downtown core in a bid to battle air pollution..After 2025, only electric vehicles, some hybrid trucks and fuel cell vehicles will be allowed in a 20-block area that encompasses its main financial and shopping district, state broadcaster SVT reported on Wednesday..A subsequent expansion could be announced in the first half of next year..Several European cities such as London have measures to restrict traffic in its city centres. Paris, Athens and Madrid all plan to ban diesel cars from theirs. Oslo, in neighbouring Norway, is introducing a zero-emission zone for heavy trucks in 2025 before expanding it to cars in 2027..But the Swedish capital would be the first to have a blanket prohibition on anything other than EVs..“We want to create a better living environment for the people who live and work here,” local lawmaker Lars Stromgren, who’s responsible for traffic policy, told SVT..It comes as EV sales languish in the Scandinavian nation due to concerns over affordability. In June, Mobility Sweden, the motor vehicle department, lowered its forecast for EV registrations to 35% of all new sales from 40% despite a 28% increase in overall car sales. Just 4% of the country’s heavy truck fleet are electric..“The downward adjustment is due to the fact that we see a sharp slowdown in orders for new electric cars, which is due to the state of the economy, the reduced purchasing power of households and the removal of the climate bonus,” it said, according to a Google translation of its website..To address the issue of charging infrastructure in a country almost as remote as Canada, in September, Sweden announced the world’s first permanently electrified highway that can recharge cars and trucks while actually driving..That’s because it uses a conductive metal rail down the middle of the road that can be accessed by similarly equipped cars and trucks — for a fee — while they drive. Costs were not disclosed but it is expected to be in service by next year. .Similar, smaller charging ‘corridors’ already exist but it will be the first of its kind to be installed on a permanent roadway.
