In a bid to curb Paris’ on-going air pollution problem, mayor Anne Hidalgo has announced that all passenger cars built before January of 1997 will be banned from entering the city limits starting on July 1st, 2016.
Cars registered before 1997 will be initially banned from Paris from 8 am to 8 pm on weekdays. The ban will gradually be extended over the following years and, by 2020, select models (including older gasoline-powered cars and diesel-powered cars built before 2011) will be banned from Paris altogether.
Government officials interviewed by Reuters estimate that about one out of every seven cars currently registered in Paris was built before 1997. However, Hidalgo has not suggested that an exception to the rule will be made for vintage cars which essentially means that driving a classic in the French capital will be illegal in about a year and a half. A 1973 Alfa Romeo GTV will fall in the same category as a diesel-powered 1994 Peugeot 205.
How the ban will be enforced and what the penalties will be for violating it will be announced at a later date.
A similar ban will be applied to both light and heavy commercial vehicles built before 2001 and two-wheelers built before 2000.
Ran When Parked 
Reblogged this on Human Interest and commented:
That has to be the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard!
Mme Hidalgo n’est certainement pas au fait que beaucoup de propriétaires de voitures diesel en France débranchent le filtre à particules de leur véhiculent afin d’éviter que le témoin “défectueux” ne s’allume…
Bien vu. C’est meme devenu un verbe: defaper (serieusement).
There have been attempts to get rid of older cars over on this side of the Atlantic. A better idea is to conduct mandatory checks on all cars, regardless of age. If they don’t conform to the requirements for their year of manufacture they can’t get their license tags. It has worked quite well in all places that have brought that out. If cars had to go through as thorough an inspection/maintenance procedure as aircraft there would be a lot less accidents and the emissions would be greatly reduced. I might add that, as a mechanic for over 40 years, I’ve seen vehicles TOWED in for a tuneup because close to half of the motorists run their cars until they won’t start. That’s when they think about doing something about it.
will this be coming to other cities at a later date? time to built garages to rent just outside the city limits.
I believe Berlin already has similar laws.
In Berlin and other German Cities, cars older than 30 years are still allowed to drive, as they are categorized as Youngtimer.
Good to know, thanks for clearing that up!
Very worrying news 😦
Totally ridiculous legislation to base it on age.
I’ve spent hundreds of hours and considerable amounts of money rebuilding my 30+ year old Land Rover engines and they now run so cleanly that they emit near zero smoke at all times and get excellent economy. Many nearly new vehicles are thrashed and not properly maintained meaning they are more likely to pollute. They should be introducing tighter and more rigorously enforced testing systems to ensure people maintain their vehicles.
I followed a three year old Audi through our local town the other day and every time it set off from the traffic lights in front of me my truck was enveloped in a huge cloud of black smoke. Either the air filter was clogged or the poor car had been badly abused and yet under this silly legislation the Audi would be allowed in to the City while my much less polluting vehicle would not. Crazy and sad!
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Quo vadis, Europe?
They should have a lower limit, like anything 25 or 30 years or older is exempt. I doubt that cars that old are the problem, it’s the 5 to 10 year old unmaintained beaters. Does Paris have mandatory emissions testing as part of registration? We have it here in Areas of WA State, but stuff older than 25 years is exempt.
Hmmm……….. how to lose votes and relinquish power – banish the poorer from travelling in cars in the city? How are the cleaners of the mayors office supposed to get into work then? In their 3 year old Mercedes??? Equalite, egalite, fraternite indeed
I’m surprised this gets any support at all. There are a lot of beaters in Paris but you also see a lot of high-end classics (think 70s 911s, E-types, etc).