Smoggy Milan Plans Vehicle Entry Toll
Date: 21-Aug-06
Country: ITALY
Milan's new centre-right mayor Letizia Moratti wants to start the toll, on vehicles owned by non-residents, on a test basis on Jan. 1.
"The cars that pollute the most will bear the greatest cost," the spokeswoman said. Italy's financial capital is considering an initial charge of one (US$1.28) to three euros.
In London, motorists are charged eight pounds (US$15.09) to enter the city. Those who live within the "congestion charge" zone are eligible for a 90 percent discount.
An average of 763,500 vehicles enter Milan daily and about 70 percent of them belong to non-residents. About 86 percent of the overall figure belong to private motorists.
The toll is part of Moratti's campaign promise to cut the number of vehicles in Milan by 30 percent in five years.
Milan would be the first Italian city to set an entry toll, though Bologna charges drivers to enter its historic centre.
Milan's subway system charges one euro in the city but covers only a small portion of the 4.3 million people in the metropolitan area.
The toll idea has drawn applause from environmentalists but criticism from Milan's neighbours.
"I'm completely against the idea that the problem of traffic and smog can be solved by a Milan tollbooth," Giorgio Oldrini, mayor of Milan suburb Sesto San Giovanni, told Corriere della Sera newspaper.