“We will only see with use” the effectiveness of the measure, believes the director of the Respire association

“We will only see with use” the impact on air quality of limiting traffic speed to 50km/h on the Paris ring road, estimates Tony Renucci, director of the Respire association, invited Thursday 7 December on franceinfo. While the Minister of Transport Clément Beaune declared himself opposed to this measure, Thursday morning on franceinfo, the Paris town hall confirmed in the afternoon its intention to continue the project to reduce the speed on its ring road.

A measurement “whose direct impact on air quality is rather marginal”believes Tony Renucci, “because the engine’s optimal point for pollutant emissions is between 30 and 70 km/h, so we do not see any variation on the most recent vehicles”.

This does not mean, however, that the measure is not going in the right direction, that is to say towards greater air quality in Paris, “we will only see with use”but according to him “if two conditions are met: traffic becomes more fluid thanks to the reduction in speed and a reduction in vehicles because people give up taking the ring road”, then the measure will have a positive impact. He recalls that for 15 years, “we see that the number of kilometers traveled on the ring road has decreased, as has the pollution in the surrounding areas”.

However, this is not the only lever for action to improve air quality, it also underlines the desire of Paris City Hall to reserve a lane for carpooling: “it will have a positive effect in reducing the number of vehicles”, while nearly nine out of ten people are alone in their vehicle on the ring road. A measure which “works very well” abroad. According to Tony Renucci, also think about “have less travel” for example thanks to teleworking, is a good lever to improve air pollution in cities.