Paris continues its course toward sustainable development: on March 23, a city referendum approved the pedestrianization of 500 new streets. Nearly 66% of voters supported the initiative.
This step is part of a larger environmental strategy. Previously, the city banned the rental of electric scooters, tightened fines for parking SUVs, and reduced the number of parking spaces by 20,000. Since the early 2000s, cars in Paris have been used 50% less.
Madrid, Amsterdam, and several other European cities have already created successful examples of this transformation, with convenient pedestrian districts, a network of cycling routes, and areas for rest.
The next step will be discussions with residents about which specific streets should become pedestrian. “It’s so nice to feel like an important part of a large mechanism for managing the city.”
