Amsterdam shops could stay open 24 hours in new test

Amsterdam is launching a trial run with unlimited store opening hours - in which stores can decide when they are open, even 24 hours a day - sometime this spring, newswire ANP reports. This proposal was brought by the Amsterdam coalition partners D66 and VVD. "Busy families with two working parents and single people with long working hours need that flexibility", D66 faction leader Jan Paternotte said. "The same applies to the night porter, the doctor on late shift or the construction worker who begins before dawn." Currently, shops in the city are limited to hours of operation from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Shopkeepers are able to apply for an exemption in limited circumstances. Opening hours are restricted to a 7 p.m. closing time on Good Friday, Remembrance Day on May 4, and Christmas Eve on December 24. Stores will be able to determine their own opening hours in this trial. The Red Light District, known locally as De Wallen, is not included in this two year trial run.