By Feargus O’Sullivan, City Lab
Highlights
Anne Hildago, Mayor of Paris, France, wants to limit the use of cars once the city lifts its lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Mayor Hildago notes that poor air quality can lead to an increased risk for fatal effects of COVID-19:
“It will make the health crisis worse. Pollution is already in itself a health crisis and a danger — and pollution joined up with coronavirus is a particularly dangerous cocktail. So it’s out of the question to think that arriving in the heart of the city by car is any sort of solution, when it could actually aggravate the situation.”
- Since public transportation use may encourage the spread of the coronavirus, Mayor Hildago wants to use alternative modes of transportation like bicycles to curb emissions
- A “15-minute neighborhood” blueprint for creating a walkable city adopted by Paris earlier this year would see the city’s surface area taken away from car lanes and repurposed as community spaces
- Once the lockdown is lifted, those planning to drive outside of a 100-kilometer zone around Paris will require official permission from national authorities
- The city plans on creating new cycle paths that will be carved out from road space to shadow the route of three metro lines
The Climate Center’s Climate-Safe California campaign calls for investments and bold policies to support clean mobility, including a phase-out of all gas-powered vehicles.
Nina Turner
Energy Programs and Communications CoordinatorJanina is a graduate of the Energy Management and Design program at Sonoma State University with experience in non-profits that specialize in sustainability and volunteerism.
