The city of Amsterdam will limit the number of sea cruises that moor at the Passengers Terminal Amsterdam (PTA) from 190 to a maximum of one hundred per year from 2026 onwards.
The PTA will also immediately return to one berth and cruise ships will be required to use shore power by 2027. The aim is a (definitive) departure of the PTA from its current location on Veemkade in 2035.
With these measures, the city is implementing the municipal council’s wish to put an end to the cruise terminal in Amsterdam.
The city council wants a liveable, clean and sustainable city. Sea cruise is a polluting form of tourism and contributes to crowds and emissions in the city. By limiting sea cruises, requiring shore power and aiming for the cruise terminal (PTA) to move from its current location in 2035, the council is responsibly implementing the council’s proposal to stop sea cruises.
…Alderman Hester van Buren (Port) said.
Reducing sea cruises is also one of over a hundred measures to achieve a sustainable visitor economy. Besides reducing the tourist crowds, the measure also has positive effects on the reduction of pollutant emissions such as particulate matter, nitrogen and sulfur oxides and CO2 emissions. Not just because of the arrival of fewer ships, but also due to the obligation to have shore power from 2027 onwards.
The use of shore power also ensures less noise pollution from moored ships. Sea cruising remains a particular polluting sector of tourism that uses non-sustainable energy sources such as diesel oil and LNG, which are needed while sailing at sea, through the North Sea Canal and across the IJ to the docks.
In consultation with the government (Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management), the Port Authority and the province of North Holland, a financial and legal feasibility study will be carried out in the coming period into a possible relocation of the PTA to the Coenhaven. Based on this feasibility study, the council will decide in consultation with the government, the Port Authority and the province of North Holland whether relocation is feasible by 2035.