In Paris, the limited traffic zone (ZTL) comes into force in the city center

Paris City Hall published a decree on Thursday, October 31 establishing a limited traffic zone (ZTL) in the heart of Paris, prohibiting traffic to vehicles only crossing the first four arrondissements of the capital. The measure comes into force this Monday, November 4.

This area of ​​approximately 5.5 square kilometers will only be authorized for emergency vehicles, buses, taxis, people with reduced mobility, motorists residing or working there and all “destination” traffic, namely those whose departure or arrival point is in the area (for a medical appointment, going shopping, to the cinema, etc.).

Postponed several times, the implementation of the ZTL is a campaign commitment from the socialist mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, to “liberate public space” occupied by cars and reduce pollution, as several have done. major European cities (Madrid, Milan, Rome, etc.) in their central districts.

Since the announcement of the project in May 2021, its perimeter has been the subject of difficult negotiations with the police headquarters, which co-signed the published decree. Initially included, the districts located between Boulevard Saint-Germain and the Seine on the left bank were removed from the perimeter, as were the Îles de la Cité and Saint-Louis, the high quays of the right bank.

Paris town hall expects a “substantial” reduction in traffic volume on the busiest arteries, of the order of -30% on avenue de l'Opéra and -15% on boulevard de Sébastopol, according to the impact study that she carried out. It also anticipates a reduction in noise and an improvement in air quality thanks to a reduction in nitrogen dioxide concentrations (-15% on avenue de l'Opéra and boulevard Henri IV, -10% on Sebastopol Boulevard).

Transport and logistics organizations from Ile-de-France, united under the Gatmarif banner, asked the town hall in mid-September for details on the conditions of access and the presentation of possible supporting documents. “There will be a first phase of education, before a second phase of control and verbalization” with a system of resident cards and online self-declaration, said the town hall.

What impact on trade?

Trade representatives are wondering about the points of sale installed in the ZTL. Yohann Petiot, general director of the Commerce Alliance, “expresses his concerns about the impact of this measure on the commercial attractiveness of the center of Paris which hosts nearly 10% of the city's commercial establishments and 17% personal equipment businesses. He nevertheless welcomes the decision of the town hall which reversed “its desire to prohibit all circulation of tourist coaches, which are essential both for national and international leisure tourists as well as for business travelers, school groups or still seniors.

For Emmanuel Le Roch, general delegate of Procos, “consultation and impact measurements must imperatively continue to objectively understand the consequences and make the essential corrective measures”, while according to him there is a risk “of cutting off the center of the capital of its periphery.

The Paris town hall anticipates a “probable increase in commercial traffic” in the area, based in particular on a study entrusted to the real estate specialist JLL which highlights the low vacancy rate excluding works in the sector (at 5, 3% in the ZTL, against for example 9.7% on Opéra) and highlights the increase in attendance on rue de Rivoli of 13% in 2002-2023, compared to 2017-2018, while the artery is for four years reserved for pedestrians, cyclists and buses.

(With AFP)