Banning diesel cars from Utrecht green zones gets final approval
Utrecht may keep its environmental zone, the Council of State ruled on Wednesday in an appeal filed by motorists club KNAC and a foundation against air pollution in Utrecht, NOS reports.
Last year a court in Utrecht also ruled that the city could keep the environmental zone, which bans diesel cars manufactured before 2001 from the city center, the station area and the Jaarbeursterrein. The city of Utrecht implemented this zone in January 2015, the first Dutch city to do so.
The Council of State ruled that the municipality has "discretion" when making traffic decisions, which means that the absolute necessity of the decision does not need to be proven. According to the Council, he municipality carefully weighed the different interests against each other and concluded that the measure serves environmental interests. The fact that the measure may only have marginal impact on the environment, does not matter, the Council said.
No further appeal is possible in this case.
The lawsuit and appeal was filed by KNAC and foundation Stop Luchtvervuiling. The foundation believes that the environmental zone has a negative impact on air quality in the city as it increases the number of traffic jams because motorists have to make more frequent detours.
