Nijmegen on the way to a zero-emission zone
The Dutch city is following the example of its capital and plans to ban the use of mopeds and mopeds with combustion engines. A plan for greener transport as part of the establishment of a comprehensive network of zero-emission zones.
From January 2025, the city of Amsterdam wants to introduce zero-emission zones for trucks, buses and vans and motorbikes. Five years later, all other vehicles, including conventional passenger cars, will also be required to demonstrate a net zero balance when driving in order to use the roads within the zone. This is an ambitious project that some 28 municipalities have already signed up to. These include Groningen, Rotterdam and Eindhoven.
Nijmegen also plans to allow only zero-emission trucks and vans to enter the zone from 2025. From 2028, only electric mopeds and scooters will be allowed to drive in Nijmegen. For, inspired by Amsterdam's plans, some local parties and initiatives have joined forces to demand the creation of an environmental zone free of polluting motorised two-wheelers. All mopeds and light mopeds with combustion engines would thus have to be banned from the urban area of Nijmegen and the neighbouring village of Lent by 1 January 2028. This is not an easy decision for the city, as almost 10,000 two-wheelers with petrol or diesel engines are registered in Nijmegen and would be affected accordingly by the ban. Nevertheless, the city council is expected to decide on the proposal this month.
Especially because the green vision of parties like GroenLinks does not look unattractive for Nijmegen - and for the Netherlands in general. So banning internal combustion mopeds and scooters that are at least 14 years old is not a bad starting point for a more sustainable future. Fewer light motorbikes and motorbikes would ultimately mean not only less emissions in traffic, but also more space for more environmentally friendly two-wheelers, such as electric scooters or the popular bicycles. Both fundamental conditions for creating cities where the mobility needs of citizens do not have to overlap with the protection of the environment and public health. That the proposal will be approved by the city council - and first traffic will only allow electric scooters in the three zones designated as emission-free - is to be expected in this respect, he said. In this case, the ban will apply in the city centre of Nijmegen, as well as in the Hof van Holland neighbourhood and on the Heijendaal campus.