Know what’s amazing? The air quality in Paris has been so poor that it’s implications are mediated by making all buses and trains free, and by banning single passenger vehicles.
It’s not the first time a large European city has taken the measure, and granted it’s always only for a few days at a time- but nonetheless the tactic is a reminder that HEY! Single passenger vehicles really aren’t the only damn way to get around! There is such thing as mass transit, and we all better get used to using it on the regular.
According to BBC Europe, this happened a few months ago in Paris:
Conditions were at maximum extreme for so many days in a row, that officials decided to implement a three-day ban on 50% of cars on the road. On day one, vehicles with even registration numbers were to be not driven. On the second day, odd numbers were banned, and so on. Every bus and train was free for the riding, and anyone caught driving their banned car would be fined thirty bucks at the many roadblocks. Also, exempted vehicles with less than 3 people would be fined.
This tactic has been implemented in Belgium, too. A place that has completely banned all Coca Cola products, reminding us all that there are still places on earth that give half a shit about their citizens.