Economic analysis by EBA supports Council of State ruling on Amsterdam canal boat policy

Published by Economisch Bureau Amsterdam on

EBA study on licensing system
Amsterdam Bureau for Economics (EBA), at the request of a group of shipping companies, conducted an analysis of the licensing system for non-touristic group transport in Amsterdam. In its recent ruling, the Council of State concluded that the municipality of Amsterdam had not sufficiently justified why hospitality vessels, saloon boats, and historic vessels were subject to the same volume policy as other boats. The findings of the EBA played an important role in this decision, as their analysis revealed that non-touristic group transport does not significantly contribute to congestion on the waterways.

Insufficient justification for municipal volume policy
EBA was asked to investigate the economic impact of the municipality’s volume policy. The analysis showed that the municipality had not provided sufficient evidence that limiting the number of permits actually contributes to reducing the nuisance for residents. EBA’s findings emphasize that the volume policy was not adequately substantiated to justify the intended goals.

Council of State ruling
A total of 51 shipping companies appealed against an earlier 2022 ruling, which had favored the municipality. In 27 of these cases, the Council of State has now issued a ruling, concluding that the municipality had not sufficiently motivated its policy and that the expiring permits were unfairly distributed.

Implications for policy
As a result of this ruling, the municipality must revise its canal boat policy and provide better justification. The aim is to develop a fairer and more transparent licensing policy that is both economically substantiated and meets legal standards.

Categorieën: Bulletins

Related Posts

Professor Raymond Gradus joins Amsterdam Bureau for Economics as associate partner

As of September 1st, Professor Raymond Gradus has joined Amsterdam Bureau for Economics as associate partner. His extensive knowledge and experience align well with the ambitions of our young and growing organization.

Evaluation of the Competition law and authority in Curaçao: achieved results and future improvements

Amsterdam Bureau for Economics evaluated the Lvic and the FTAC in the period 2016-2023 on behalf of the Ministry of Economic Development of Curaçao. The evaluation shows that the FTAC is an active, professional competition watchdog that has done a lot in its young existence in educating the private sector and the population, providing information and developing internal and external procedures. Partly because of its short existence and declining budgets, hard results that are noticeable to the population have so far been limited.

Diseconomies of scale in Small Island Developing States

During a lunch seminar at Ministerie van Binnenlandse Zaken en Koninkrijksrelaties, Paul Tauxe, analyst at Economisch Bureau Amsterdam / Amsterdam Bureau for Economics and student at the Toulouse School of Economics, presented the results of his research into diseconomies of scale/lack of economies of scale in Small Island Developing States.