Hundreds protest against low-emission zones, deemed exclusionary

Initiated in 2019 to limit fine particle emissions, ZFEs are a key measure of the Climate and Resilience Act of Emmanuel Macron's first five-year term. Often located in large urban areas, they exclude from their perimeter certain very old and polluting vehicles, identified by Crit'Air 3 or higher stickers depending on the city.

In May, the Assembly voted to abolish these ZFEs, at the initiative of the Republicans and the National Rally, but this abolition did not complete its legislative process, slowed down according to the associations by political instability.

"It must be said that this is not a fight against ecology, we all think that it is extremely important to make efforts on this point, but not in this way," Jean-Marc Belotti, coordinator of the Fédération des motards en colère (FFMC) in Paris and the inner suburbs, told AFP.

"The mobilization was perhaps greater in the regions than in Paris," commented Isabelle Lebret, one of the organizers of the Parisian demonstration, which brought together around a hundred people.

"If Paris City Hall or large urban areas wanted to combat pollution, there would be many other things that should be done," said Marie Terrier, a 52-year-old civil servant, in the crowd.

In Lyon, around a hundred two-wheelers also parked in front of the town hall in the early afternoon, to protest against a system that has not proven effective in reducing pollution, according to Paul, deputy coordinator of FFMC 69, who did not wish to give his last name.

The ZFE "requires a selection of citizens based on financial means, since it is the people with the least money who live far from city centers" and who "cannot buy vehicles that allow them to enter city centers," he argued.

In Nice, no more than a handful of people gathered in the city center this morning. Antoine Fabre, a 20-year-old student, said he didn't object to the measures, but found them "a little too brutal" and "anti-social."