Norway’s government once urged Norwegians to buy cars that use diesel, thinking they were less polluting, but later determined that wasn’t true because of their nitrogen oxide emissions. Now Oslo’s city government is poised to ban driving with diesel on cold winter days, to reduce smog in the capital.
Both the mayor of Oslo, Fabian Stang of the Conservative Party, and longtime city council member Rune Gerhardsen of the Labour Party said they were among those who bought diesel cars, when taxes on them were reduced to spur sales. Gerhardsen said he’d now start looking at ads for used cars using gasoline instead, when he joined city council members voting in favour of restrictions on use of diesel-driven cars.
Ola Elvestuen, head of the city’s environmental and transport division for the Liberal Party, said the city only had jurisdiction over city roads, but was in discussions with state transport officials to urge a similar ban on state highways.
Elvestuen said the restrictions, both on personal cars and heavy trucks using diesel, could take effect from next winter.
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