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Cyclists on the Place de la Bastille: soon without traffic?
Photo: THOMAS SAMSON / AFP
Downtown Paris could soon become a kind of restricted traffic area.
If it goes according to the plans of the city administration, a prohibition zone will be created to massively restrict car traffic.
»We want to implement it in the center of the capital with one goal: to drastically reduce through traffic. Today, of the approximately 180,000 vehicles that drive through this area, 100,000 drive through without stopping, "said Green politician David Belliard, responsible for redesigning public space and mobility at the Paris City Hall, the newspaper" Le Parisien ". In the future, only residents, buses, taxis, but also craftsmen, tradespeople and deliverers should be able to travel in this area.
A consultation process has now been started in which details are to be clarified.
For example, it is still unclear which rules should apply to coaches, according to Belliard.
The implementation of the plans is targeted for 2022.
The zone will extend around the Seine island Île de la Cité, as well as from the Place de la Concorde to the Place de la Bastille.
In addition to the first four arrondissements, parts of the fifth, sixth and seventh arrondissements are also affected - an area that extends for a total of about 3.5 kilometers from east to west and about 2 kilometers from north to south.
"The establishment of this zone aims to support pedestrians and cyclists, create more safety for them and reduce pollution and noise," said Belliard.
The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, has long declared war on cars and air pollution and, for example, has greatly expanded the cycle paths.
If the air is poor, traffic is significantly restricted, and pollutant stickers for cars are compulsory.
Some streets are closed to car traffic, such as those on the right bank of the Seine.
Instead, a promenade has been created there.
ene / dpa