The Aburrá Valley metropolitan area announced an emergency pollution alert Tuesday afternoon that will entail an amendment in the ‘Pico y Placa‘ license restriction for drivers and motorists.
“A state of alert has been declared due to 12 of 18 air quality measurement stations having registered a Red Alert on the Air Quality Index,” a statement from the metro area read. “The other six stations are at Orange Alert on the index.”
In Medellín, if half of the stations are on Red Alert for 48 straight hours or more, an alert is issued.
The increased pollution has been evident within the city center within the past few days and is expected to last up to two more weeks, according to El Colombiano newspaper.
As part of the emergency alert, the metro area announced that the ‘Pico y Placa’ vehicle restriction will extend to six digits on Wednesday and last until Friday. In the graphic below, motorists can consult their license restriction day. The hours will extend from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. for all vehicles made after 1996.
Further restrictions can be seen below:
#Atención | Declaramos el #EstadoDeAlerta en materia de #CalidadDelAire para el territorio Metropolitano desde el 7 de marzo de 2018 por un período mínimo de 3 días de acuerdo con el Plan Operacional para Enfrentar Episodios de Contaminación Atmosférica –POECA pic.twitter.com/WDIhTQw5D5
— Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá (@Areametropol) March 6, 2018
