The metropolis of Lyon has made some “adjustments” compared to its initial project to apply its low-emission zone (ZFE). Following a public consultation, the results of which it presented on Friday, it reconsidered its desire to extend the scope concerned and the timetable for its implementation. Created in 2020, the latter should ultimately exclude the most polluting vehicles, including those running on diesel.
“We have amended the project taking into account all the feedback we have had with the consultation that has been carried out with both economic players and individuals”, indicated the local authority which will propose to the vote of its advises the new version of the Lyon ZFE.
A “overhaul” after the dissatisfaction of elected officials and the population
On February 14, the environmentalist president of the Lyon metropolitan area, Bruno Bernard, announced a “overhaul” of this extension project, which had caused the dissatisfaction of some of the elected officials and the population because of the speed of its implementation and some of its restrictions. In particular, he declared that he was postponing for two years, from 2026 to 2028, the ban on driving in the Low Emission Zone (ZFE) for “Crit’Air” 2 vehicles. Two months later, Bruno Bernard had “committed to introduce several adjustments to the final arrangement of the ZFE” concerning economic actors.
The scope of “the adjusted ZFE expansion project” now corresponds to “the current scope” of the ZFE (Lyon, Villeurbanne, Caluire-et-Cuire, Bron and Vénissieux) to which are added, from 1 January 2024, two expressways and two portions of the ring road, depending on the metropolis.
“Now it’s up to the state to do what it has to do”
Initially limiting itself to heavy goods vehicles and light commercial vehicles classified Crit’Air 5, 4 and 3 or unclassified, the ZFE of Lyon excludes since last January the vehicles of private individuals Crit’Air 5 and unclassified, the most polluting. As initially planned, the ban on Crit’Air 4 and 3 private vehicles in the zone will be effective on January 1, 2024 and January 1, 2025. Crit’Air 2 vehicles can still drive there until January 1, 2028 and beyond, only on the two expressways and the two sections of ring road newly integrated into the ZFE.
“Now it’s up to the state to do what it has to do,” concluded the metropolis, echoing what Bruno Bernard had estimated last February. On Wednesday, a Senate report called for easing the timetable for restrictions and strengthening aid for the purchase of clean vehicles to facilitate the acceptance of EPZs. To date, eleven metropolises, the first of which were Lyon, Grenoble and Paris, have their ZFEs with different timetables. A generalization in France of these zones is provided for by law by 2025 in the 43 agglomerations of more than 150,000 inhabitants.