There’s a nationwide push towards cleaner air, and Eindhoven’s not going to be left out. In recent years, the city’s air quality seems to have worsened. To combat that, the Eindhoven city council revealed its Zero-emission 2030 plan earlier this week.
“Eindhoven municipality’s gradually working towards a zero-emission zone within the Ring by 2030,” reads a summary issued by the Council. According to the report, Eindhoven drew up an Emission-Free Mobility plan in 2017 already. This plan contains many measures that would have to be implemented to achieve the city’s climate objective by 2030.
“Calculating the effects of implementing the plan’s measures has shown that a zero-emission zone within the Ring.. is by far the most conducive to achieving … climate targets by 2030,” reads the report. The first phases will address buses and delivery trucks, which need to meet Class 4 emission standards by 2021, and Class 6 by 2022.
Then comes, especially diesel, private cars and busses, which must meet Class 5 standards by 2025. There are several parallel initiatives, such as e-bike and scrapping old scooters too.
What’s the Council’s timeline?
According to the summary report, it looks like this:
2020: Drawing up an implementation plan and preparing an Environment Zone and Zero Emission Zone traffic regulation. This is for vans, trucks and buses with at least an emission class 4.
Mid-2020: City Logistics Implementation Plan signed.
1 January 2021: Extend the enforcement area to include the entire environmental zone within the Ring, excluding De Kade. Make the Environmental Zone applicable to buses with at least emission class 4.
2022: Tighten the environmental zone for trucks and buses to at least emission class 6—national and local evaluation – what additional steps are needed until 2025 and after.
2025: Introduce the Zero-emission zone for commercial vehicles, trucks and buses and an environmental zone for diesel cars from emission class 5 within the Ring (including De Kade). All 120 public transport buses in Eindhoven will be electric.
Target in 2030: Emission-free zone within the Ring for all vehicle categories.
The municipality itself’s also working on greening its own business mileage.
Eindhoven News representatives were present at the press conference held on Wednesday morning to reveal the Zero-emission 2030 plan. We wanted to find out if Eindhoven residents are going to need stickers for their vehicles and about how the city’s going to enforce this regulation practically.
Stickers aren’t needed yet. But this could become a reality in the coming years for the country as a whole. If all goes well, Eindhoven will have zero emissions in the Ring by 2030.
For Eindhoven News :Melinda Walraven and Aroop Bhattacharjee
