Paris votes to triple parking fees for heavy cars
French capital tackles the rise of SUVs and other large cars, including EVs, by raising parking fees to $30 per hourParisians have voted to penalise drivers of SUVs and large, heavy vehicles by tripling the cost of parking them across the French capital.
From now on, petrol, diesel and hybrid cars that weigh more than 1600kg, and electric cars that weigh in excess of 2000kg, will be charged the higher rate.
Drivers of vehicles now deemed overweight will pay as much as €18 ($A30) per hour to park in the centre of the city and €12 ($A20) per hour to park within the city limits – three times the amount it normally costs.
The new proposals were approved by 54.55 per cent of all voters, although the turnout for the referendum was only 5.7 per cent of the 1.3 million residents who were eligible to vote.
What’s more, the fees only apply to visitors from the suburbs or tourists, meaning residents are exempt – as are taxi drivers, tradies, health workers and people with disabilities.
Targeting SUVs that have been judged both “dangerous” and “bad for the environment” in France, Paris’ local government hopes to reduce the number of large polluting vehicles from entering the city.
Critics of the scheme suggest that the weight ceiling is too low for combustion-powered vehicles and that too many mid-size family sedans like the Audi A6 would be judged overweight and eligible for the penalty rate.
It’s a similar story for electric cars, where the two-tonne limit would also net the BMW i4 sedan.
Worse still, plug-in hybrids that have been specifically created to slash emissions in urban environments with their all-electric range of between 60-100km will also be penalised, with cars like the BMW 330e weighing in at 1740kg, while even the small Mercedes-Benz A 250e tips the scale at 1680kg.
Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo said the increased tariff was a “form of social justice”.
“This is about very expensive cars, driven by people who today have not yet made the changes to their behaviour that have to be made [for the climate],” she said.
The new way of tackling the rise of SUVs and curbing appetites for oversized vehicles is expected to be copied by other European cities, including London, where its mayor Sadiq Khan has already admitting he is considering replicating the policy.
Images: Getty Images
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