The 40 million motorists association had not seen such strong animosity against a government measure for months.
"In terms of anger, the calls and letters we receive on this subject are even more virulent than when the price of fuel increased or even when the speed was reduced to 80 km / h", certifies its general delegate Pierre Chasseray.
The subject of this ire can be summed up in three letters: ZFE, for “low emission zone”.
As is already the case in the Parisian metropolis, the principle consists, from 2023 in agglomerations with more than 150,000 inhabitants, to gradually ban the circulation of the most polluting vehicles.
If you have a Crit'Air ecological sticker of more than 3, you could very quickly be concerned.
And eventually threatened with a fine of 68 euros if you drive in a restricted traffic area.
To read also "Rural people, we are the eternally forgotten": why these motorists fear anti-pollution measures
In the Paris region, within the perimeter delimited by the A86, the Crit'Air 4, i.e. diesel cars registered before January 1, 2006 and motorized two-wheelers from before July 2004, no longer allowed to drive on weekdays from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. since June 1.
In July 2022, Crit'Air 3 will be banned.
Then on January 1, 2024, the Crit'Air 2, that is to say almost all diesels.
A petition and letters to senators
While France is threatened by Europe with a record fine for non-compliance with air quality thresholds in several large cities, the Ministry of Ecology sees EPZs as the most effective weapon to fight against discharges of fine particles and nitrogen oxides.
As part of the examination of the Climate Bill, the Senate is studying precisely this Monday, June 14 the generalization of these areas.
The opportunity for 40 million motorists to go on the offensive by launching an online petition and sending a letter to elected officials of the Palais du Luxembourg to encourage them to vote against the extension of EPZs.
The association has also created a specific website on which it does not hesitate to compare these EPZs to… “high exclusion zones”.
"The movement restrictions induced by EPZs are discriminatory measures because they will penalize the least well-off households the hardest, those who cannot afford to reside in city centers and who therefore need the most their motorized vehicle to get around on a daily basis, ”underlines 40 million motorists.
According to his calculations, nearly "seven out of ten French people will no longer have the right to move freely within the next four years".
"Their only fault is to have legally bought a car corresponding to their mobility needs and their budget," insists the association.
40,000 deaths per year linked to pollution
The government makes other calculations.
“Each year, air pollution kills 40,000 people in France,” recalls the Minister of Ecology Barbara Pompili.
The main cause is known: the air in our big cities is loaded with fine particles and nitrogen oxides, 70% of which are generated by automobile traffic.
Tomorrow, thanks to this text, we will breathe cleaner air ”.
In the minister's office, we cite a study by the Airparif organization which estimates that a ban on Crit'Air 3 vehicles in 2025 would imply, for example, in Paris "a drop in nitrogen oxide and particulate emissions. traffic fines of about 40% ”.
"It is not because the intention is good that the measure is right, fulminates the general delegate of the association 40 million motorists Pierre Chasseray.
We are going to house millions of motorists who live on the fringes of large cities, need their cars to get there and do not necessarily have the means to buy a newer one.
This is called the politics of selfishness.
"
Aid for the purchase of clean vehicles "is not sufficient"
"There is obviously a health emergency, but if we start by prohibiting people from driving because their car is too old without offering them any accompanying measures, we run into disaster, warns the professor of environmental health Olivier Blond. .
And we risk again talking about punitive ecology.
"
At the ministry, we highlight the many aids offered to motorists to change cars.
“France has one of the most generous support policies for individuals,” insists an advisor to Barbara Pompili.
"These aids are not sufficient to allow the poorest to buy a new vehicle", replies Olivier Blond.
Thirteen European countries have yet adopted the principle of restricted traffic zones today, with no less than 250 EPZs already in operation.
Determined to no longer be among the poor pupils of the Old Continent in terms of air pollution, France is aiming to create 44 EPZs throughout the country.
“Which will put us in 3rd place, after Italy and Germany.
"