Ninety euro fine for driving old diesels into Utrecht

From May 1st, drivers entering the center of Utrecht in a diesel vehicle made before 2001 will be issued a fine of 90 euros, BN De Stem reports. Utrecht is the first city in the Netherlands to have a environmental zone for all old diesel vehicles.

The environmental zone took effect on January 1st, but for the first four months, people entering the city with a too old diesel vehicle only received a warning. From Friday the municipality will start issuing fines.

The environmental zone is being monitored with cameras, flash cars and supervisors. The cameras along the approach roads to the city center take photographs of all licence plates. If the car is too old, the driver will see a red sign a 100 meters further that states "no", the environmental zone is a prohibited area.

Those who live in the environmental zone and own a too old diesel car, can receive a subsidy for scrapping the car and buying a cleaner one. The municipality of Utrecht told the newspaper that thousands of people have applied for this subsidy since early this year.