Parisians have voted to triple the parking costs for SUVs – including heavier electric ones and hybrids. This Sunday, the city held a referendum, with Parisians voting 56.6% in favor of increased parking fees for SUVs and heavy sedans, of all varieties.
While the narrow, traffic-clogged streets of Paris seem a better fit for the likes of the nimble Twingo, city officials say that the number of SUVs in the city has increased by 60% over the last four years. SUVs account for 15% of the 1.15 million private vehicles parked on Paris streets every night.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo sees the move to curb SUVs and other heavy cars in the city as “a form of social justice,” with road safety and air pollution the main targets of the vote. She said that the vote had one particular driver in mind: rich drivers of the heaviest, most expensive, and polluting cars on the street who, essentially, need to wake up and see how their choices affect the rest of the city – with the caveat that only out-of-towners will be affected by the price hike. Still, officials say that some 10% of the vehicles parked in Paris will see increased parking fees, which could bring in up to €35 million, reports Le Monde.
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