Paris to ban cars when pollution levels peak
The Local France - [email protected]
Published: 3 Nov, 2015 CET.
Updated: Tue 3 Nov 2015 18:01 CET
Paris is set to introduce cuts to traffic when pollution levels spike, after the ecology minister conceded to a long-running disagreement with the mayor of Paris.
After yet another pollution spike in Paris on Monday, Ecology Minister Ségolène Royal conceded that traffic bans should be put in the hands of city authorities.
She had previously lobbied for bans to come after three consecutive days of particularly bad pollution levels, but accepted that the mayor's idea of bans after each peak should be introduced instead.
The bans, which see alternate driving days for cars based on whether their registration plate ends with an odd or even number, will now be rolled out "whenever the region and city authorities demand it", said Royal.
Such a ban was carried out in March this year, after Paris was briefly measured to have been the most polluted city on earth.
Indeed, one study produced last year claimed that the air quality in Paris was so bad that it was the equivalent of being in a room with eight smokers.
Monday's news will be welcomed by Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, a staunch supporter of a greener Paris, who has long fought for stricter anti-pollution measures on the roads of the French capital.
With Paris set to host the COP21 climate summer in December, it's little wonder that every measure is being taken to be as green as possible, with the eyes of the world's media prepared to scrutinize every last detail of the event.
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After yet another pollution spike in Paris on Monday, Ecology Minister Ségolène Royal conceded that traffic bans should be put in the hands of city authorities.
She had previously lobbied for bans to come after three consecutive days of particularly bad pollution levels, but accepted that the mayor's idea of bans after each peak should be introduced instead.
The bans, which see alternate driving days for cars based on whether their registration plate ends with an odd or even number, will now be rolled out "whenever the region and city authorities demand it", said Royal.
Such a ban was carried out in March this year, after Paris was briefly measured to have been the most polluted city on earth.
Indeed, one study produced last year claimed that the air quality in Paris was so bad that it was the equivalent of being in a room with eight smokers.
Monday's news will be welcomed by Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, a staunch supporter of a greener Paris, who has long fought for stricter anti-pollution measures on the roads of the French capital.
With Paris set to host the COP21 climate summer in December, it's little wonder that every measure is being taken to be as green as possible, with the eyes of the world's media prepared to scrutinize every last detail of the event.
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