The city of Amsterdam aims to ban all petrol and diesel vehicles from town by 2030 in its new Clean Air Action Plan. The city council will debate the proposal at the end of this month, followed by a six-week deadline for public comments. Amsterdam’s Clean Air Action strategy not only envisions a switch to electric transport on every level, including public transit and boats but also includes unspecified subsidies and exemptions to facilitate the transition to electric vehicles for citizens and businesses. A proposal has been made last November that includes subsidies of up to 6,000 euros but so far nothing has been decided. Besides, the city wants to invest in the charging network for electric cars, which is already rather extensive. The Dutch capital wants to implement the new action plan step by step, starting with tightening the rules for the inner city environmental zone from next year. From 2025 onwards, only zero-emission taxis, scooters, buses, trucks and vans will be allowed to enter the area inside the A10 ring road. From 2030, the plan also includes passenger cars and motorcycles wanting to drive in Amsterdam. “We want cleaner air for all Amsterdam residents. Dirty air is still too often a silent killer,” says Alderman Sharon Dijksma who considers air pollution the fourth most common health risk for city dwellers. “Amsterdammers live an average of one year shorter due to dirty air. We will do everything we can to improve that situation,” Dijksman adds. Amsterdam started back in 2009 to install charging infrastructure for electric vehicles and has since taken a strictly demand-driven approach. What this means, explains Mathieu Wijnen, project manager for the city’s charging infrastructure. In conversation with electrive, he also reflects on how to become a widely zero-emission city by 2025. VIDEO Similar initiatives like the Clean Air programme in Amsterdam are underway in cities such as Paris and London or Madrid. All policymakers have recently accelerated the switch to electric transport and initiatives such as the C40 Climate Group globally connect these towns driving change on the municipal level. Sweden, however, has decided to ban the sales of fossil-fuel powered vehicles nationwide from 2030. Norway aimed even higher, with no new cars with combustion engines to be on the market in 2025 and also Denmark has drawn up corresponding plans for the year 2030. nltimes.nl
All petrol and diesel vehicles will be banned in Amsterdam by up to 6,000 under proposals outlined in the city's clean air action plan. The city council will debate the measures needed to meet this ambition, which include electrification of public transport and possible subsidies or exemptions to encourage the public and local businesses to adopt electric vehicles. Residents of Amsterdam live an average of one year less due to air pollution, according to Alderman Sharon Dijksma, who said that dirty air is "too often a silent killer".