This city wants to ‘punish’ big SUVs by imposing higher parking fees

Large SUVs take up a whole lot of precious space in congested cities across the world and are mostly always have either one or two persons inside. In a bid to discourage the use of such vehicles within key districts, authorities in the French capital city of Paris now plan to impose a higher parking fees.

Civic authorities in Paris have observed a rise in the number of large SUVs being driven on city roads in recent times by as much as 60 per cent over the past four years. According to reports, there are around 1.1 million private cars in the city and of these, 15 per cent are SUVs.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo has now proposed to impose a higher tax fee on large vehicles and will have local residents of the city vote on the referendum come February 4. According to the proposal from Hidalgo, SUVs and 4x4 vehicles that are being driven into Paris by those in suburbs and further away will attract this higher parking fees. This means local residents with such vehicles will not have to shell out extra. This is based on studies that such vehicles still account for a relatively low proportion of the total privately-owned vehicles among Paris residents.

Hidalgo beleives that discouraging use of large SUVs will help control pollution levels while freeing up road space. “Today, many of you are telling me that there are still too many big, polluting cars taking up more and more space on our streets, sidewalks, and even bike paths," she said in a video message. “We need to curb this phenomenon by limiting the presence of SUVs and 4x4s in Paris."

The proposal also calls for higher parking fees for large SUVs that are running on alternate fuel sources or making use of hybrid technology. Public transport options are being encouraged but the reaction from carmakers may be scathing if the plans are set into motion post the vote.