*This is quite a strange development from the mayor of a town whose chief claim to fame is making FIAT cars.
*Or then again, maybe it's not a strange development at all.
http://www.lifeinitaly.com/node/18757
(ANSA) - Milan, February 19 - A one-day halt to road traffic on February 28 is set to spread from Milan and Turin to Venice and other northern Italian towns and cities, Turin Mayor Sergio Chiamparino said Friday.
Chiamparino, as head of the national mayors' association, chaired a meeting of northern municipal chiefs in Milan Friday to decide on the one-day halt and a co-ordinated follow-up programme of longer-term measures.
"From the signs we've had, it looks like Venice and Padua are on board and most of the other Po Valley towns will follow," Chiampiarini said, stressing the importance of "covering the widest possible area".
Mayors from Piedmont, Lombardy, Emilia Romagna and Veneto have indicated "very broad support" for the one-day measure and agree it must be followed by "structural measures," he said.
These would include incentives for lower-polluting cars and moves to make domestic and industrial energy use cleaner and more efficient.
"I think the most important signal the towns of Italy's most polluted regions can give is to launch a concerted effort in the fight against smog," Chiamparino said.
Environment Minister Stefania Prestigiacomo has also announced plans for a national anti-smog drive.
