Paris plans to fight pollution by raising SUV parking fees, excluding electric cars.

CTOnews.com July 13 news, according to the British "Guardian" reported that the Paris city government plans to levy higher parking fees on SUV owners to reduce pollution in the city.

Paris lawmakers voted last month to approve the measure, which is expected to take effect Jan. 1, 2024, and electric cars and large family cars are expected to be excluded from the measure. Details of the charges and classification of this measure are not yet clear. It is expected that the vehicle size and weight will be taken into account.

CTOnews.com learned from the report that the number of SUVs in Paris has increased by 60% in the past four years, and SUVs currently account for 15% of the 1.15 million private cars parked in the city every night. They want higher fees to curb growth in the number of models and encourage citizens to buy lighter vehicles.

David Belliard, deputy mayor for public space and transportation policy, supports this, arguing: "SUVs are useless in Paris, where there are neither dirt roads nor mountain roads. Worse, they are dangerous, bulky, and require too many resources to manufacture. "

Pierre Chasseray, spokesman for the drivers 'protection group 4 Million Autobots, disagreed, saying: "SUVs are family cars…for weekends or vacations. We are catering to a very small minority of the urban population who have decided to make SUVs a symbol of the fight against pollution. "

Earlier this year, the city of Lyon introduced a similar new law, which will take effect next year. According to the policy, parking fees in public areas will be determined based on the vehicle's size, weight and engine. Electric cars only cost $16.50 (15 euros, 118 yuan) per month to park, while gasoline-powered cars weighing more than 3803 pounds (1725 kilograms) will pay three times as much.