Traffic is a major source of inner city pollution. Photo: Depositphotos.com |
The highest Dutch administrative court has cleared the way
for Rotterdam to ban old diesel and petrol cars from the city centre.
The
outgoing administration had announced plans to ban diesel-powered cars built
before 2001 and petrol cars from before July 1992 but were successfully
challenged in court by motorists.
Now the Council of State has found in favour
of the city and it will be up to the new, six-party council executive to decide
when to implement the ban.
Meanwhile, motoring organisation ANWB on Wednesday
called on the cabinet to draw up rules for city environmental zones, saying
motorists are becoming lost in a jungle of bans and restrictions.
Amsterdam and
Utrecht have already banned cars from their city centres and Nijmegen, Leiden,
Arnhem and Maastricht are among the other cities where environmental zones
could be on the cards.
Minister
Junior transport minister Stientje van
Veldhoven had said earlier she would draw up a set of regulations before the
summer, but that deadline may now not be met, the AD reported.
‘I want clarity
for both motorists and local authorities,’ the minister told the paper. ‘And it
has always been my intention to come up with specific agreements before the
summer. These agreements will also cover specific cases, such as invalid cars.’
In Amsterdam there is mounting irritation at the spread of Cantas and other
mini vehicles, which were originally meant for people with disabilities. They
are now proving popular with youngsters because they are not subject to parking
restrictions.
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