Abstract
Reducing emissions of pollutants from cars requires that new vehicles be designed and built to pollute less, and also requires some ongoing inspection and maintenance programme to ensure that a vehicle’s operation conforms to those design standards. This paper focuses on these programmes, commonly called Smog Check programmes. The most extensive and well-studied Smog Check programme in the United States is in California. Though that state is not typical in all respects, examining its experience is instructive.
