Ongoing air pollution in Milan has triggered a traffic ban today for ten hours in a bid to reduce smog.

City officials in Milan are imposing the measure because pollution levels in the city have exceeded the statutory limit for 12 days in a row.

European Union standards dictate a maximum level of 50 micrograms per cubic meter on any given day.

120, 000 vehicles will be affected by the move – which was first carried out as a trial in 2007, according to a local Italian newspaper.

The ban was last imposed in February.

An Italian Government survey recently found cities in Italy’s northern plain, including Milan , Turin, Bergamo and Brescia, experience some of the worst air pollution in Europe.