The metropolis of Toulon Provence Méditerranée has postponed the deadline to a later date. The environmentalist opposition contests this decision.
Announced since 2019, the entry into force of the Low Emission Zone (ZFE) of the Toulon metropolis has once again been postponed to a date still unknown at this stage.
The executive of Toulon Provence Méditerranée had initially planned to inaugurate this system from January 1, 2025. But this measure, which aims to prohibit the most polluting vehicles from accessing the territory of the metropolis, is no longer considered necessary. For now.
“The metropolis, in terms of air quality, complies with European regulations,” assures Gilles Vincent, the vice-president of the community in charge of energy transition.
The opposition metropolitan councilor, Cécile Muschotti, disputes this reasoning. “It's too easy to hide behind regulations, saying: 'But we respect the rule. Look, we put sensors in such and such a place and we're good.' , where are the sensors placed? I would like to know the measurements on Boulevard de Strasbourg during rush hours, at the entrance and exit of the tunnel”, she asks at the microphone of BFM Toulon Var.
550,000 vehicles directly targeted
Gilles Vincent, also mayor of Saint-Mandrier-sur-Mer, also believes that the system could affect the most vulnerable. “These 550,000 vehicles could not be used to cross the metropolis. But the people who own them do not have the means to change them,” he adds.
Guest of Var Politiques on November 14, Josée Massi, mayor of Toulon, nevertheless announced that the ZFE would be in force “in 2025” in “seven municipalities”.
Before this announcement, the entry into force of the system had already undergone several postponements, notably at the beginning of 2023.
Contacted by our branch, the Var prefecture indicates that the “State will not impose anything on January 1, 2025 with regard to the ZFE, the law setting deadlines, but without a coercive framework”.
Tom Ferrara with Florent Bascoul
