Dutch crack down on 4x4s

Amsterdam - City authorities are to attempt to remove SUVs (Sport Utility Vehicles) from the city's congested streets by refusing to issue owners with parking permits, according to proposals put forward by the councillor responsible for the environment.

Alderwoman Hester Maij made the proposal as one of 50 aimed at improving air quality in the Dutch capital. Other measures will hit heavily polluting vehicles and diesel-engined cars.

"Parking permits are seen as the appropriate instrument to achieve this," the city's Action Plan Air Quality 2005 says. The main target is to reduce nitrogen dioxide.

The aim is to achieve the required standards in air quality by 2010. "The air in Amsterdam is cleaner than ever, but we are not up to standard," Maij said.

She said Amsterdam residents would live six months longer on average if the plan was implemented.

A similar attempt in the Dutch city of Nijmegen failed after massive protest.

Among other changes proposed are the introduction of hydrogen- powered buses and of particle filters on cars and trucks. The city also wants educational courses to get drivers to change the way they drive.

Amsterdam motorists were given six weeks to respond to the plan. - Sapa-dpa