Paris to Vote on Converting 500 Streets to Pedestrians to Reduce Pollution

In a new effort by the French capital's city council to reduce car use and improve air quality, Parisians will participate in a referendum on Sunday to vote on whether to pedestrianize 500 additional streets in the city and increase green spaces.

This is the third such referendum in Paris in two years, following a vote in 2023 that approved a ban on electric scooters and a decision last year to triple parking fees for large SUVs.

Ahead of Sunday's vote, Deputy Mayor Patrick Ploche told Reuters, "Over the past 25 years, we have gradually worked to reclaim public spaces for pedestrians and gentle transport... to create a breathing space within the neighborhoods and places where we live."

Paris City Council data shows that car traffic in the city has more than halved since the Socialists took power at the turn of the century.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who has been in office since 2014, has overseen a major transformation of the city's streets. Since 2020, 84 kilometers of cycle paths have been created, and bicycle use increased by 71% between the end of the COVID-19 lockdown and 2023.

If the referendum is approved, authorities will eliminate an additional 10,000 parking spaces in Paris, in addition to the 10,000 spaces removed since 2020. The capital's two million residents will be consulted on which streets will become pedestrian zones.