In Less than 10 Years, Diesel Will be Banned in Four of the World's Largest Cities

By 2025, no diesel vehicles will be rolling the streets of Paris, Mexico City, Madrid, or Athens. The mayors of these cities made a pledge to ban diesel cars and trucks at this year’s C40 Mayor’s Summit, a biennial meeting of leaders that aims to follow through with global environmental efforts.

Diesel fuel is known to produce harmful emissions and pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides—which could form ground level ozone. These by-products are known to cause respiratory problems. Several clean energy options are becoming available to the public, and the cities plan to promote the use of alternative fuels in place of diesel, as well as walking and cycling instead of driving.

The global effort to curb emissions has been progressing, and seeing cooperation from municipalities improves chances for proper implementation. "Mayors have already stood up to say that the climate change is one of the greatest challenges we face," says Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who is also currently the chair of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group.

"Today, we also stand up to say we no longer tolerate air pollution and the health problems and deaths it causes — particularly for our most vulnerable citizens."