Ce qu’il faut savoir sur la ZFE à Bordeaux, la nouvelle loi contre les voitures polluantes
By Nicolas Gosselin
Published on
As part of the Climate and resilience lawthe Bordeaux metropolis Al’legal obligation – like 42 other large French cities – to set up a low emission zone (EPZ) on its territory by 1uh January 2025.
This new regulations – which should have an impact on a daily basis thousands of motorists in Gironde – is not the same everywhere in France. Each community is responsible for adapting it to its geographical area and to the use of its inhabitants.
In April 2022, the Bordeaux Metropolis has not yet determined all the criteria for applying the ZFE in Bordeaux, but the main outlines are taking shape and the process has begun.
What is the sector of the ZFE?
At present, elected metropolitan officials have only validated the threshold that will delimit the low-emissions zone: this will be thewithin the Bordeaux ring road.
“There is a consensus”, insists Claudine Bichetthe vice-president in charge of climate and energy transition.
It must be said that the data of theatmospherethe air quality observatory, clearly shows that the highest concentrations of nitrogen dioxide are measured in the intra-ring road and more particularly in the intra-boulevards of Bordeaux.
In total, these are 14 municipalities which are wholly or partly contained within the perimeter of the future ZFE: Begles, Bordeaux, Bouliac, Brugge, Cenon, Eysines, Floirac, Gradignan, The Bouscat, Lomont, Merignac, Talence, Pessac and Villenave d’Ornon.
Attention, to avoid any misunderstanding, it is important to remember however that the ring road itself is not concerned.
Which vehicles will be prohibited in the EPZ?
Thus, thousands of vehicles will no longer have the right to travel within the ring road. Which ? When ? There, the question remains unanswered.
Categories of vehicles concerned, frequency of application (7 days a week or not on weekends), time arrangements (24 hours a day or delimited time slot)… No decision has been taken yet, assures Alain Anziani, the president of the Metropolis, and Claudine Bichet.
On the other hand, they did not hesitate – during a press conference on March 31, 2022 – to drop some clues about the solution they favor.
“A restriction up to Crit’Air 3 would result in a 23% reduction in nitrogen dioxide emissions and 14% in fine particle emissions, compared to 6% and 4% respectively if Crit’Air 3 vignettes are still authorized in the ZFE”, shared Claudine Bichet. “And if on establishes the ZFE, the objective is to obtain results and a notable improvement in the quality of the air”, engaged Alain Anziani.
Moreover, in Strasbourg or Toulouse, which had to urgently set up a ZFE from 2021 and constituting concrete examples for elected metropolitan officials, the solution adopted was to only authorize Crit’ vignettes from 2025 Air E, Crit’Air 1 and Crit’Air 2.
If this scenario is duplicated in the Bordeaux metropolis, we would then have the equivalent of a third of the Girondin car fleet which would be prohibited from entering the Bordeaux ring road, i.e. more than 300,000 vehicles concerned.
Do users have a say in the ZFE?
Metropolitan elected officials are well aware that such a measure could be badly experienced by impacted motorists. Especially among the most precarious.
For this reason, and to avoid “any phenomenon of the yellow vests type” according to Alain Anziani, the policies guarantee that several phases of consultation allow the population to have their say.
A survey conducted by Ifop on a representative sample of the population began on March 29, 2022. It will constitute control groups for a targeted consultation.
Then from September 2022 and until December, a general public consultation will be carried out, in particular via online questionnaires. Finally, at the start of 2023, elected officials could use the results of the consultation to define the criteria for the ZFE.
One thing is certain: they must implement progressiveness. A gradual implementation of the ZFE could take place from the end of 2023-beginning of 2024, without control and therefore without fine, in order to educate and allow users to anticipate the legal obligation.
Also, they could decide on relatively flexible criteria at first (authorize Crit’Air 3 vignettes at the very beginning, for example), before tightening them at a deadline a little further away than 2025. Just to allow additional time for motorists who will have to change vehicles.
In Lyon, for example, Crit’Air 4 and more will be banned in 2024, then Crit’Air 3 and more in 2025, then Crit’Air 2 and more in 2026.
How will the EPZ be controlled?
Motorists who do not comply with the regulations will be liable to a fine of up to 450 euros. In general, however, it is a fixed fine of 68 euros.
How will unauthorized vehicles in the EPZ be controlled? By who ? Again, it’s a bit fuzzy. Alain Anziani explains that it will be up to the mayors, who have police rights, to enforce the regulations according to their goodwill. So it would be up to the municipal police to stick to it?
“The State does not help to control”, deplores the president of the Metropolis, who hopes for a boost without which, one imagines that the controls should not be easy to implement in a regular and homogeneous way on all the territory.
Is assistance provided for users?
To avoid exposing yourself to a fine, it will be understood therefore, you must change your polluting vehicle for a vehicle more respectful of the environment or promote the modal ratio.
And how are the small budgets doing? The electric car remains inaccessible to many budgets.
Alain Anziani and Claudine Bichet promise the establishment of aid but the terms have not yet been decided. The subject is under consideration.
As part of the implementation of the ZFE, the Métropole has signed a territorial cooperation contract with the urban community of Libourne, where financial aid is offered for the inhabitants of Cali who convert their vehicle to bioethanol.
For the agglomeration of Bordeaux, the president of the Metropolis would prefer to find another solution. “In the energy transition, we are doing better than bioethanol,” he comments, without however giving the solution that holds his favor.
At his side, Claudine Bichet talks about retrofitting, which makes it possible to convert a thermal vehicle to electric. “In addition, it avoids sending a whole part of the car fleet to the scrapyard”, she argues.
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