Paris: streets of the Butte Montmartre soon reserved for pedestrians
The streets eligible for pedestrianization were selected based on their narrowness, the possibility of vegetation and the “degree of impact on noise pollution and pollution”. The studies will begin in the first quarter of 2023, and the works, at the end of the year, for delivery at the end of 2024. This project consists mainly of modifying the traffic plan and creating three categories of pedestrian zones: several sections of prohibited to cars by barriers (lower Lepic, Orsel, Steinkerque, Muller, etc.); a “open pedestrian area” at the top of the Butte; and an “meeting area”in residential Montmartre (Avenue Junot, Haut Lepic, etc.). “Total pedestrianization has been debated, but there are a lot of inhabitants and parking lots under certain buildings”, further specifies the mayor in the daily.
For shopkeepers, this project will make other retailers want to set up shop and for the 12 million tourists who come up each year, to discover narrow streets with even more character. But making the mound a pedestrian zone does not please all the residents who fear for the safety of this particularly touristy place, with an upsurge in pickpockets, already very present around the Sacré-Coeur.