Mexico City - The Mexican government on Tuesday published a new regulation seeking to reduce air pollution in the Valley of Mexico by establishing "stricter" emission levels for public and private vehicles, as well as better control systems.

New vehicles will be exempt from the rule "for up a maximum of four years by virtue of the fact that their emission levels are guaranteed up to 100,000 kilometers (about 62,100 miles)," Environmental Secretary Rafael Pacchiano said at a press conference.

The rule, which will enter into force on July 1, incorporates cutting edge technology, such as the On-Board Diagnostics system, to verify emission levels. "That will allow quicker, clearer and, above all, more trustworthy verification" with an eye toward ensuring that only "those vehicles that pollute less" are on the streets, he said.

The government announced last May the creation of this measure to reduce daily traffic circulation by at least 1.7 million vehicles - out of the 5.4 million in the Mexico City area - which during the second half of 2015 obtained fraudulent certification that they emit few pollutants.

That came after the Supreme Court ruled that the traffic restriction must be made on the basis of emissions and not the year of the vehicle.

The new rule will apply to all automobiles in the Mexico City Megalopolis area (which includes the states of Mexico, Hidalgo, Mexico State, Morelos, Puebla and Tlaxcala), including public transport and cargo vehicles.

The regulation will enable authorities to "immediately" remove from circulation those vehicles that are visibly emitting pollutants, Pacchiano said.

The federal Profepa environmental protection agency will be in charge of inspecting the verification centers to ensure proper compliance with the rule, he said.

Mexico City, the nucleus of the Metropolitan Zone, this year has experienced eight Phase I environmental alerts due to elevated pollutant levels.

In addition, in the coming days the government will announce a series of measures to regulate other sources of pollution.