"The plan is based around the idea of superilles (superblocks) – mini neighbourhoods around which traffic will flow, and in which spaces will be repurposed to “fill our city with life”, as its tagline says."

A precedent for Barcelona's superblocks was actually instituted in the city back in the late 19th century when Ildefons Cerdà planned Eixample, a district intended to free up the crowded medieval neighborhoods of the old city. With their famous beveled corners, Cerdà's large residential blocks were intended to serve as lungs for the city, with interior courtyards to provide greenery on a regular and frequent basis.

But urban development laid waste to Cerdà's carefully-laid plans. Today, the city loses about 3,500 citizens each year to air pollution.

The bold new plan comprises a series of interventions to create "superblocks" from nine of Cerdà's smaller blocks. The initiative starts with restricting vehicular traffic to primarily the perimeter streets.

City officials hope that by implementing their strategies all at once, car use will be reduced 21% in the next two years.

To find out about other urban initiatives to curb air pollution, check out these links:

• Billions exposed to dangerous air as pollution grows at alarming rates around the world
• More and more people are dying as a result of air pollution in England
• New Delhi mandates odd-even car rationing to fight world's worst air pollution
• Reducing Turin's smog with free public transit