Have Low Emission Zones slowed urban traffic recovery after Covid-19?

Abstract

This paper provides a bridge between the literature on the effects of the pandemic on mobility and the literature on low emission zones (LEZ) impacts. Using data for large European cities in the period 2018-2021, we examine whether LEZ may explain differences in the recovery patterns of traffic in European cities after the covid shock. Controlling for several city attributes, we examine whether LEZ cities are less congested before and after the pandemic in comparison to non-LEZ cities. Our hypothesis is that LEZ may have been more effective in reducing congestion after the pandemics because the fleet renewal process has slowed down. Our results validate the traffic mitigating role of LEZ, which is robust to the lasting effects of Covid-19.