- Study looks at the contribution of toxic emissions by drivers in 25 European countries
- Drivers in eastern Europe pose the biggest threat to the environment
- Poland, Estonia, Croatia and Slovakia ranked in the top 5, making eastern Europe the most toxic region in the continent
- Sweden ranked in first place overall for having Europe’s greenest motorists
The Eco Experts, a leading European solar and home improvements site, has released a new map exposing the European countries with the most noxious drivers, with the Czech Republic outed as the most toxic.
The study investigates driver toxicity in 25 European countries by cross-referencing data for the percentage of alternative fuel cars, average vehicle age, the number of vehicles per 1,000 people, and ambient air pollution.
Individual rankings from these factors were combined to give an overall impression of the countries that are home to the most toxic motorists.
Poland, Estonia, Croatia and Slovakia ranked in the top 5, making eastern Europe the most toxic region in the continent.
The Czech Republic, which has one of the highest recorded air pollution levels in the continent, topped the list for having Europe’s most toxic drivers. Old, poor quality cars pushed Czech drivers to the top of the ranking; the study found that the average age of cars in the country is just over 14 years old, six years older than cars seen on Britain’s roads. The findings also revealed that the number of Czech cars powered by sustainable fuel alternatives is one of the lowest figures in Europe at just 0.7%, nearly 22 times less than the number seen in neighbouring Poland.
The UK secured a coveted position in the top 10 cleanest scale beating rivals France and Europe’s renowned green leader Germany. Sweden ranked in first place overall for having Europe’s greenest motorists.
Polluting Poland: Poland proved to be one of the most unusual cases in the study. Although polish motorists were named as the second most toxic in Europe, the country also has the highest proportion of alternative fuel vehicles at an impressive 15%. The findings suggest that efforts to tackle the country’s critically high air pollution levels – which is over double the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) recommended limit – is heavily reliant on the roll out of sustainably powered vehicles.
Fran Whittaker-Wood of The Eco Experts comments: “Road transport is one of the biggest sources of air pollution and although our research shows that poor quality vehicles is the biggest contributing factor to toxic driving emissions, the reality is that most people can’t afford to replace their cars with sustainable alternatives because they are just too expensive. If governments are serious about cutting driver pollution levels then more needs to be done to make these cars affordable to everyone.”
Original research at: https://blog.theecoexperts.co.uk/most-toxic-drivers-europe
