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Centre of Paris to become a huge low traffic neighbourhood

Through motor traffic to be banned from centre of French capital by end of next year

The centre of Paris is set to become in effect a huge low traffic neighbourhood by the end of next year under an ambitious plan to remove through traffic from the heart of the French capital.

A consultation was launched this week on the initiative, outlined in an interview with Le Parisien by deputy mayor David Belliard, which will cover the entirety of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th arrondissements and, across the Seine on the Rive Gauche, parts of the 5th, 6th and 7th arrondisements, as shown in this graphic.

To draw an analogy from the UK capital, the zone is similar in size to one running from Oxford Circus to St Paul's Cathedral and from the British Museum to the Houses of Parliament.

Not all motor traffic will be banned from the centre of Paris – local residents will have access, as will buses, taxis, tradesmen, professionals and delivery vehicles needing access to the city centre, although no decision has yet been made on whether tourist coaches will be exempt.

The plan is the latest move by Mayor Anne Hidalgo to transform Paris, with a focus on encouraging cycling and walking and making the city more liveable and reduce air and noise pollution, and according to Belliard, of the 180,000 motor vehicles that currently use the zone each day, 100,000 cross it without stopping.

The zone would cover around 7 per cent of the area of the city, and asked whether it might spread further in the future, Balliard said that Parisians would have an opportunity to make their views heard on that as part of the consultation.

“The creation of this peaceful zone is an important block in our policy of transforming public space to give more space to pedestrians, bicycles, buses and nature,” he said.

“It is in addition to the creation of ‘streets to schools’, to our bicycle plan and to our desire to cut surface parking spaces by half.”

The zone would be marked out by road signage and markings, while city staff would also carry out checks at the entrances to it, said Baillard, adding that steps would also be taken to protect small businesses and prevent them from being driven out by the higher rents that often accompany streets being pedestrianised.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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26 comments

Avatar
eburtthebike | 2 years ago
1 like

No doubt the car-obsessive, cycle-hating Brexiteers will look upon this as another valid reason for leaving the EU.  Another?

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giff77 replied to eburtthebike | 2 years ago
5 likes

IME  I've found both brexiteers and remainers to be rabid anti cycling and LTN development. 

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Bungle_52 replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
0 likes

Two points.

"What's important in this country is that the Greens don't make the old mistake of allying with socialists" I would agree with you if we had some form of proportional representation. Unfortunately we don't.

"there is broad societal support for green initiatives" ... as long as it doesn't negatively impact us personally.

 

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Eton Rifle replied to Lance ꜱtrongarm | 2 years ago
7 likes
Nigel Garrage wrote:

The EU are way behind government generally in terms of the environment.

Oh mate. I remember what a filthy place the UK was in the 1970s. We were known as the dirty man of Europe. EU membership obliged us to clean up our shitty beaches and stop dumping sewage in the rivers.
That's all going to change now, of course.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/sep/25/england-rivers-pol...

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brooksby replied to Eton Rifle | 2 years ago
1 like
Eton Rifle wrote:
Nigel Garrage wrote:

The EU are way behind government generally in terms of the environment.

Oh mate. I remember what a filthy place the UK was in the 1970s. We were known as the dirty man of Europe. EU membership obliged us to clean up our shitty beaches and stop dumping sewage in the rivers. That's all going to change now, of course. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/sep/25/england-rivers-pol...

  

 

surprise

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Dingaling replied to Eton Rifle | 2 years ago
1 like

I remember it. But the country was being run by labour for most of the seventies. Something that all the tory haters on this website shouldn't forget. 

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Captain Badger replied to Dingaling | 2 years ago
3 likes
Dingaling wrote:

I remember it. But the country was being run by labour for most of the seventies. Something that all the tory haters on this website shouldn't forget. 

A lot of the 70s were taken up by dealing with the 5h1t the tories left behind. I love it when tories imagine that everything they do happens in a vacuum.

However, most govts over the past century have been tory, and the chaos and mayhem they produce is staggering. And in any case "but look over there, Socialism!" is not an acceptable response to criticism for the vast corruption, racism, iniquity, and environmental vandalism that the tories perpetrate through direct action or wilful negligence. 

The tories are in power now, have been for the past 11 years, and for best part of 20 years through the 80s and 90s. They are who we criticise now, for their current and past actions, because saying "it's socialism's fault" frankly is laughable.

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Rich_cb replied to Eton Rifle | 2 years ago
0 likes

50 years ago...

How does the EU's current record on the environment compare?

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Captain Badger replied to Rich_cb | 2 years ago
0 likes
Rich_cb wrote:

50 years ago... How does the EU's current record on the environment compare?

What since we left?

I dare say it's hardly changed, but judging by the example that the attempt to ban neonicotinoids was obstructed by Cameron's govt  I doubt that we are a sad loss environmentally speaking.

It's quite funny to see brexiters criticise EU policy conveniently forgetting that UK was a prime-mover and perfectly capable of getting its way, and did much of the time. But apparently nasty EU was bullying poor Little Britain

Another thing that brexiters seem to be unable to comprehend is that environmental issues are bigger than the UK, and any unilateral action worthy as it is (eg live animal exports)  is much less effective than had we remained and driven policy throughout the EU.

Time and time again UK govts, mostly tory but not exclusively, have been in the position to drive through meaningful environmental policy both home and in the EU, but consistently failed, not "cos EU", but due to dereliction of duty on govts part in favour of short term gains for the few that will ultimately be paid for by all of our children and grandchildren.

Since leaving, that dereliction will continue and probably accelerate, for at least this parliament - we didn't leave it behind in "the Deal". 

 

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Eton Rifle | 2 years ago
11 likes

Vive la France.
Cities are for people, not noisy, stinking two-tonne metal boxes. If only we could see this sort of leadership in the UK.

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growingvegtables | 2 years ago
5 likes

Fascinating wee sentence in there.  Bit of a terminal blast to the anti-LTN idiots.

"Steps would also be taken to protect small businesses and prevent them from being driven out by the higher rents that often accompany streets being pedestrianised."

Hmmm - that says any of these schemes are GOOD for local businesses?

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iandusud replied to growingvegtables | 2 years ago
11 likes
growingvegtables wrote:

Fascinating wee sentence in there.  Bit of a terminal blast to the anti-LTN idiots.

"Steps would also be taken to protect small businesses and prevent them from being driven out by the higher rents that often accompany streets being pedestrianised."

Hmmm - that says any of these schemes are GOOD for local businesses?

I was living in France before, during and after the construction of the Millau Viaduct. When the project was announced all the local businesses were up in arms saying that they would loose all the through traffic and business that it brought. There were huge protests. What actually happened was Millau was transformed from being a huge traffic jam which no one, myself included, liked to drive though and couldn't get out of the place fast enough, into the beautiful tourist town at the gateway to the Gorges du Tarn that it is. Tourism to Millau boomed. The viaduct is the best thing that ever happed to Millau businesses. 

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Dnnnnnn replied to iandusud | 2 years ago
4 likes
iandusud wrote:

The viaduct is the best thing that ever happed to Millau businesses.

It's the only reason I visited the town.
Not that I'm saying that was the best thing that ever happened to Millau...

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Compact Corned Beef replied to Dnnnnnn | 2 years ago
1 like

Likewise - bloody brilliant piece of engineering and design. Pretty sure I'd have just filtered through the town otherwise thinking 'what a lot of lorries'.

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Sriracha replied to growingvegtables | 2 years ago
2 likes

Indeed. And moreover, as the benefits of a non-motorised milieu become self-sustaining, the rude intrusion of motor vehicles under whatever excuse will become less and less tolerated. In so far as viable alternatives exist, pressure will mount until they are adopted. Taxi firms might be the first to have to adapt.

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TheBillder | 2 years ago
1 like

Now it's our turn to shout ""Ah could ask eem, but ah think e already got one" from the battlements (ref Monty Python & Holy Grail, typing that accent isn't easy). Britain is one big LTN as through traffic to and from Europe has been hugely reduced.

Yay Brexit. They told us it would take a while for the benefits to become clear.

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wtjs replied to TheBillder | 2 years ago
1 like

"Ah could ask eem, but ah think e already got one" 

Such quotations suggest that there are other sad old knackers on here with the ability to quote from MP. I am not alone! I am not a number, I am a free man!

Yay Brexit. They told us it would take a while for the benefits to become clear.

True, true!

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hawkinspeter replied to wtjs | 2 years ago
3 likes

I was surprised the other day when a co-worker recognised my phone text alert - the word "Information" from The Prisoner.

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Dnnnnnn replied to hawkinspeter | 2 years ago
1 like

In your organisation, who is Number 1?

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hawkinspeter replied to Dnnnnnn | 2 years ago
2 likes
Duncann wrote:

In your organisation, who is Number 1?

Questions are a burden to others; answers are a prison for oneself.

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Dnnnnnn replied to hawkinspeter | 2 years ago
1 like

That wasn't the answer I expected.
Anyway.
Be seeing you.

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hawkinspeter | 2 years ago
8 likes

Noice! That's what I consider levelling up.

So when will we get any progressive policies or are we a nation of car-obsessives?

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eburtthebike replied to hawkinspeter | 2 years ago
0 likes
hawkinspeter wrote:

So when will we get any progressive policies or are we a nation of car-obsessives?

I'm guessing that that is a rhetorical question and this reply is entirely redundant.

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Dnnnnnn replied to eburtthebike | 2 years ago
0 likes

In fairness, London does have private motorist-deterring congestion and emissions charges, and some pretty good cycling infrastructure. Quite a lot of LTNs and new infrastructure during the pandemic too. There aren't many private cars in the heart of the city - taxis, buses and good vehicles are another matter but Paris is permitting them too.

Which isn't to say it couldn't be better (not least in K&C, mentioned below) but it's not pandering to "car obsessives" (I don't think most Londoners own one anyway and ownership was falling in the past couple of decades).

The problems are the provinces, as we Metropolian Elitists say.

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zero_trooper | 2 years ago
16 likes

I'm not even French and I want to upvote this story  1

Take that Kensington & Chelsea!

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Bmblbzzz replied to zero_trooper | 2 years ago
1 like

I don't know quite how the local administration of Paris works, but that might be a key difference: it's governed as a city rather than a concatenation of competing parishes (or boroughs as Londoners like to call them).

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