From 1 January 2024, heavy coaches from 7.5 tonnes are no longer welcome within the ring road around the city centre, the S100. The people of Amsterdam suffer from these heavy coaches. The coaches go to the edges of the city. From there, visitors can continue their journey by public transport. An exception applies to the Weesperstraat, Valkenburgerstraat and Kattenburgerstraat.
Alderman Melanie van der Horst of Traffic and Transport: “Coaching cars are useful for transporting school classes or the elderly to cultural places in the city, for example. But 300 to 450 coaches a day are too many for the center, where there is little space. We will put an end to that from next year.”
Nuisance
Residents experience nuisance from the heavy coaches. They cause congestion in narrow streets and make traffic less safe for cyclists and pedestrians. They are also too heavy for the quays and bridges, and they emit a lot of harmful gases when they are waiting for their passengers with their engines running.
Additional boarding and disembarking places
That is why heavy coaches are no longer allowed to enter the center. They must stay outside the center ring S100. There will be additional boarding and alighting points, for example on De Ruijterkade Oost. In addition, the municipality is working on good parking spaces at stations, from where visitors can go to the center by public transport.
Exceptions
There is an exception for the Weesperstraat, Valkenburgerstraat and Kattenburgerstraat. Many cultural organizations are located here, such as the Nemo, the Jewish Historical Museum, the Hermitage and the Jewish Portuguese Synagogue.
Large coaches that drive primary school students, the elderly, people with a disability or artists to certain (art, educational or cultural) locations can apply for an exemption.
Your opinion
You can submit a view on the plan. This way you can share your opinion about how the plans are implemented.
Source; Municipality of Amsterdam