What you need to know about the Paris “no car day”
Central Paris is once again banning cars and motorised bikes from 11h today (Sunday October 1), as the third annual “Day Without My Car” ( "Journėe sans ma voiture" ) event takes place.
The event, which bans all cars and motorised bikes from the centre of the city, is an initiative from the Mairie (Town Hall) of Paris.
The ban takes place from 11h to 18h, and inhabitants are encouraged to walk, use push bikes, or manual scooters instead of cars, with the Mairie reminding everyone that cars and motorised vehicles usually take up 50% of public space, despite representing just 13% of all travel in the capital.
Over 1 000 people - including municipal “agents” and “patrols” - will be on-site at the entrances to the city and on major roads, to ensure the smooth passage of the event. They will also have authorisation to sanction anyone who does not respect the rules.
However, the Mairie stressed that the “objective is not to punish” people, and pleaded for a “fun and convivial” day.
The air quality and noise levels of the city will be measured at the end of the no-drive day (a bike with measuring equipment will travel through the city at the allotted time), with results compared to those usually seen after last Sunday’s normal day.
Results will be reported in real-time online.
Anyone who needs to be on the roads for a non-emergency reason, such as returning a hire car, is encouraged to do so outside the designated no-drive hours.
Public transport and taxis are still permitted, along with emergency and breakdown vehicles; while plumbers, lift technicians and locksmiths will be granted road access if their work is an urgent emergency.
Other exceptions include tourist buses, medical vehicles, removal vans able to present a valid parking permit, adapted vehicles for disabled people, and professionals making urgent deliveries.
Anyone urgently visiting a hospital - such as if a woman is giving birth, for example - will also be allowed through, as will anyone who can prove their main residence is within the no-drive zone.
The ban does not apply at all to the périphérique (city ring road), nor the bois de Vincennes and Boulogne. This is to ensure that travel between neighbourhoods (banlieues) is still possible.
Certain roads within the bois de Vincennes and Boulogne will also be closed, as part of the usual “Paris Respire” project, which habitually closes roads on Sundays and holidays.
