Wallonia debates introducing road vignette
The road vignette is an electronic payment system (in this case a sticker or a digital variant) drivers would have to purchase to use certain road systems.
The Brussels Times reports that the liberal Mouvement Réformateur (MR) and centrist Les Engagés parties would price this at 40 Swiss francs, or the equivalent of €41 (£34) for 13 months.
The introduction of a road vignette had been included in the political coalition agreement of the Flemish in 2004, with its implementation scheduled for 2009.
EU legal objections at the time, particularly from the Netherlands, prevented its introduction with the idea ultimately shelved by 2010.
This time, however, Walloon politicians are confident the new proposal will abide by the EU’s regulations, with the aim of implementing it in the near future.
MR leader Georges-Louis Bouchez said: “We are going to work with a cooperation agreement so the people of Brussels will not be penalised by such a vignette.
“Our goal is not for other Belgians to pay, but for the millions of Europeans who drive through Wallonia. We are asking them to pay a reasonable contribution for the use of our road network.”