Clean air on Mexico's roads
April 27, 2010![A general view shows the Tiete express highway, one of the ring roads most prone to traffic-jams in the city, in mid-morning time during the World Car Free Day, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on September 22, 2010. AFP PHOTO/Mauricio LIMA (Photo credit should read MAURICIO LIMA/AFP/Getty Images)](https://static.dw.com/image/16192158_800.webp)
Project goal: modernizing the transportation system, water and energy supply
Project size: a new subway line and two high-speed bus lines, 85 bicycle terminals, bike lanes and pedestrian zones for the more than eight million residents of Mexico City
Investment: 3.4 billion euros between 2008 and 2012
CO2 savings: 4.4 million tons each year, 1.8 million tons of which in the transport sector
Almost every day, Mexico City is shrouded in smog. To combat that problem the city has developed what it calls the "Plan Verde." This "Green Plan" is expected to reduce carbon emissions by hundreds of thousands of tons each year. The mega-metropolis will invest around a billion dollars each year in modern, high-speed buses, bus lanes, pedestrian zones and a bicycle-rental system. This massive project got Mexico City a lot of attention at the climate summit in Copenhagen last year.
A film by Alexa Meyer and Patrick Benning