Amsterdam councilor calls for peak time tolls experiment

The D66 in Amsterdam is calling for a regional tolling system on the roads around the Dutch capital. Motorists who want to reach Amsterdam during busy periods like rush hour, must pay an additional tax, according to D66 city councilor Bart Vink. The aim is to keep the city accessible during peak times, the Telegraaf reports.

Vink wants Amsterdam to team up with the national government, public works department Rijkswaterstaat and interest groups like ANWB and RAI to experiment with such a tolling system. Vink suggests making this a "smart tax" by, for example, installing cameras on the A10 that register cars passing during peak times. This plan forms part of the D66 election program for the municipal elections next year.

According to Vink, Amsterdam's focus should no longer be on the construction of new roads, but rather on the "better utilization of existing road infrastructure".

"Pricing of road use is an interesting tool. Similar rules are also applied in Oslo, Stockholm and London", Vink said to the newspaper. He points out that the coalition agreement gives room for experiments. "There is no region more suitable for this experiment than Amsterdam."

According to Vink, this extra tax shouldn't necessarily be put on the motorist, but rather their employer. "If a company chooses to send employees to Amsterdam during rush hour, an extra amount can be charged."