New restrictions for vehicles entering the city centre will begin this Thursday, May 5th. These restrictions will last throughout the summer season until September 10th, in order to control the increased night-time traffic during this period.
Certain zones have been designated as areas open only to the traffic of vehicles with authorisation permits. These areas are called ZTL (Limited Traffic Zones) and will include most of the historic city centre. Through traffic will be severely limited on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings. Unless equipped with a permit, private vehicle users should be prepared to leave cars and scooters in peripheral pay parking areas on these nights.
In the past, these restrictions have gone into effect in July, meaning that this year’s summer restriction schedule has begun two months earlier than usual.
City centre merchants immediately voiced their dissent to such an elongated period of restriction.
In an attempt to accommodate city centre merchants and to attract shoppers, some members of city council have proposed a lifting of these restrictions on Saturday afternoons. The centre shop-owners have long insisted that the traffic restrictions discourage potential shoppers from coming into the centre. Fears are that extended traffic restrictions will only exacerbate the situation already caused by the general economic crisis.
