Paris has implemented a ban on cars with even number plates on the roads, in a bid to control unprecedented levels of air pollution.
The French capital has issued its third consecutive travel restriction on cars, as winter pollution levels continue to impact air quality to an unprecedented degree. Any motorists who ignore the ban are penalized with a €22 (£19) fine if they fail to comply.
In addition to the unconventional ban, the city has made public transportation free in order to encourage individuals to leave the vehicles behind, or alternatively share rides. The ban has alternated between odd and even number plates to differentiate which cars are subject to the pollution control measure.
Charlotte Songeur, a representative from Airparif, which measure air quality within Paris commented:
“Without it the air would be even more polluted. It’s an emergency solution to an urgent problem.”
She added: “Even before this, 1.6 million French people were breathing in a level of nitrogen dioxide over European recommended levels.”
A similar ban has only been implemented by the French authorities four times in the past two decades, and never for three consecutive days. Consequently, the latest measure exposes the severity of pollution across the Parisian streets as a thick smog continues to blanket the city. Such high levels of harmful pollutants can aggravate asthma, allergies or breathing problems in individuals and according to figures, around 5.5 million people die globally from exposure to harmful emissions.
The Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo addressed the measure in tweeting a picture “proving the necessity of reducing the presence of cars in the centre of the city”
See the original tweet below:
#Paris aujourd’hui. La preuve de la nécessité de réduire la place de la voiture en centre-ville #pollution pic.twitter.com/R10Tdu4o2Y
— Anne Hidalgo (@Anne_Hidalgo) December 6, 2016
This follows similar concerns over harmful levels of pollution in an increasingly congested London. Last Wednesday, London Mayor Sadiq Khan issued warnings over pollution at various public transport locations including tube stations and bus stops.