Nearly all streets in the French capital will have a speed limit of 30 kph (18.6mph) by the end of summer, authorities have announced. Local drivers have already called the move “a disgrace.”
The new speed limit will be imposed on almost every street in the city, including areas not close to Paris’ historical center. “The point is to reduce the space taken by cars, which involves lowering their speeds,” its Deputy Mayor David Belliard, who represents the Green Party and is in charge of Parisian transport, told AFP.
Starting from September, a 70kph (43mph) limit will remain only on the main ring road surrounding Paris, and just few major roads in the center, including the Champs-Elysees. Many Parisian suburbs have also changed their traffic rules to match the city limit.
The city’s mayor, Anne Hidalgo from the Socialist party, who might run for French presidency next year, has been also talking about removing over 40% of street-level parking spaces in the city and raising parking fees. With Hidalgo in office, a number of Paris streets have become pedestrian-only, and there are already proposals to outright ban many vehicles from its downtown areas starting next year. Plans to turn four central arrondissements into “low-traffic zones” have been announced, with affected areas including the locations of the Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Louvre Museum, and the popular Marais quarter.
While authorities say they want the city to be more environmentally friendly and safer for pedestrians and cyclists, the announcement of the new speed limit has caused a wave of disapproval from many of its residents. Critics say that existing speed limits already make it almost impossible to drive around the city, and further reductions are “a disgrace.”
“She is going to make Paris a museum city for scooter sores who eat quinoa and soy steak,” one Twitter user wrote, while another suggested the move had been deliberately announced at a time when many Parisians are on holidays, to avoid protests.
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