Thinking about taking your truck, car, or Vespa into the Comune of Venice? It’ll cost you 90 euros a year, starting in May. It’s a novel way of fighting the pollution and quality of life problems that stem from a mounting motor invasion.
Uh, but there are no cars in Venice, right? So what’s the big deal?
Actually, the Comune of Venice includes not just the familiar historic center, lagoon islands and the Lido, but also the terra firma towns of Mestre, Marghera and Tessera (site of the airport). And if you’ve spent any time in these places, you know exactly why they passed this law.
"Over 46 million motor vehicles flow into the Commune of Venice every year”, according to deputy mayor, Michele Mognato. “In 2003, there were 111 days in which the pollution levels exceeded standards."
From time to time, in major cities across Italy, there have been "Sundays without cars" where downtown areas are blocked off and made walkable and livable. This new motor tax (called the bollino rosso) takes it to a new level.
Personally, I like it. Reducing atmospheric pollution can only be a good thing for the lagoon ecosystem, which is also clouded by emissions from the Murano glass factories and the petrochemical plants at Porto Marghera.
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