Christophe Ferrari, president of Grenoble Métropole, said: “A non-permanent ZFE would be more suitable for citizens”
More than five months before the establishment of the ZFE, a low-emission zone 13 municipalities of metropolitan Grenoble. Starting July 1st, Crit’Air 5 vehicles will no longer be able to drive in this area. Then it will be the Crit’Air 4 in less than 11 months and the Crit’Air 3 in less than two years. table set by climate and sustainability law but the modalities are adaptable.
Therefore, the Metropolis decided to consult the citizens. The report was published this Thursday, February 2. President of the Metropolis, Christophe Ferrari is a guest of France Bleu Isere to decipher the theme.
France Bleu Isère: 83% of residents say they are not ready to implement the ZFE. Are you still following this original schedule from July 1st?
Christopher Ferrari : It is the state, not the metropolis, that decides the calendar. We must practice it, but under the necessary conditions to be relevant and intelligent. That’s why we wanted to consult with the National Commission for Public Debate in advance to understand what the brakes will be, the complexities, but also what will be problematic in the daily life of the residents, because this is the real issue of daily life. How do we walk, how do we go to work, how do we bring children to activities, how do we go shopping? All this gave us a feel for what we could adapt to.
The calendar cannot be adjusted. On the other hand, other things can be adapted. Is ZFE permanent? Are there exceptions? Which ones? For whom? And then, how do you build a mechanism to help change mobility or change vehicles? The goal is still to improve air quality because we have a real impact on health. It is in about ten metropolitan areas in France.
Listener Question – Marie-Claude: Couldn’t we set up free transport to compensate for ZFE and the impossibility of driving your car?
SMAG has already accomplished several things. First, solidarity prices for the lowest incomes, which will change further in the coming months to have particularly competitive and interesting prices. Then we added free stuff. Our dispute is free against service quality. You may very well be free, but if you don’t have public transportation where you live, it’s useless. This is a real issue for municipalities outside the thirteen municipalities that ZFE is interested in and outside the perimeter of the metropolis.
So, the real issue is the increase in public transport service offers in the metropolis? This applies to SMAG, but also to the region, as it organizes the lines for the intercity and tomorrow’s metropolitan network. We are not moving towards generalized open access because we cannot afford it today. You know that in the age of Covid, all transport networks are in great financial trouble. We are not compensated by the state in these matters. So, first of all, there is a need to really support our transportation offer, maybe change it to go more to the municipalities that need and don’t have enough transportation offers today. . Free may be a longer-term goal, but for me anyway, it’s a momentary goal that’s meaningless and impossible to accomplish.
There is a serious lack of information about the system, as more than one in two French people do not know the Crit’Air sticker for their car. How do you intend to inform the residents?
The Crit’Air sticker was introduced almost four to five years ago in the French capital on an experimental basis, specifically for the management of pollution peaks. For prevention, I remind you that a stupid and mean approach, even vehicles, strange vehicles. Therefore, it is the quality of the car that determines whether you can drive during peak pollution times. So I would tell the listeners that the Crit’Air sticker is like the insurance sticker on your car, like your car registration document. Everyone should get into this habit by now because it will be mandatory everywhere. It is not only in the city of Grenoble, but in all the metropolises of France.
Listener Question – Roland : How do you intend to implement this measure? Because most of the cars around me don’t have a Crit’Air sticker on the windshield. Have you scheduled checks?
If the ZFE is permanent, the police can check you, but if you are in a non-permanent ZFE, there can be no stationary checks, only checks on the move organized by the municipal police, gendarmerie. and by the police. The video verbalization system will be used in all metropolises.
The state promised us that it would be done in 2022, but then it changed to 2023 and now we are told it will be 2024. So there will be cameras that will view your license plate and automatically drive through the file. you have the right Crit’Air miniature. At this time, the works will be applied.
Listener Question – Jean-Claude: Classic cars do not have Crit’Air stickers. How do they ride?
In addition to the permanent nature, exceptions will apply for a certain type of transport. Collector cars will be released. You will register it in the registry with its registration and will be able to circulate quietly. For older cars, you need to look separately on the website. Just enter a few elements of the gray card and you will see your Crit’Air sticker number.
You talk about permanent and non-permanent ZFE. There are several scenarios that are being explored, can you elaborate on them for us?
Today there are two. A non-permanent ZFE which will operate from approximately 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday and no ZFE on weekends. Why this desire? Because the idea is to say that ZFE cannot become an ecological aberration. You have a car and changing it is the energy used to build other cars. ZFE should not be there to fatten the order books of automakers. We believe that currently a non-permanent EPZ would be more suitable for citizens.
