The council is looking to introduce a Public Spaces Protection Order.
It would be applied to drivers who fail to switch off their engines when parked or waiting in a queue.
Currently, officers can only issue a Fixed Penalty Notice if a driver refuses to stop idling when asked.
As a result, just one fine has been issued in the last six years, despite officers asking drivers to stop idling over 65,000 times.
Without the real threat of a fine, the council says drivers have little motivation to change their behaviour.
