Rotterdam council plans to improve the city’s air quality and has drawn up a €12m package of measures which locals will be asked to approve, Dutch media report on Friday.

The plans include getting rid of polluting cars and slashing pollution levels. In addition, the council’s own fleet of vehicles will be overhauled to reduce its pollution rate by 25%.

The council is also considering financially rewarding owners to get rid of polluting cars. In addition it suggests that no more parking permits will be given for diesel vehicles built before 2005 and petrol-driven cars predating 1992.

More charging stations will be built for electric vehicles and there will be better bike facilities.

The council also wants to ban lorries from the ‘s Gravendijkwal, currently the city’s most polluted road and a major highway that leads to the Maas tunnel. Transport organisations have already criticised the lorry ban proposal, saying it will force freight firms to use longer, more expansive routes, the Financieele Dagblad reports.

Research shows Rotterdammers live three years less than the average Dutch national, which is partly due to road pollution.

Utrecht and Amsterdam have already taken steps to reduce the number of polluting cars in their city centres.