Air pollution in Paris region 'cut in half' over the past 20 years

Paris air pollution is down 50% after its radical bike-friendly transformation

A decade ago, streets in Paris were clogged with cars and exhaust. But now, if you ride a bike down a major boulevard at rush hour, you’ll be surrounded by a stream of other cyclists—and much cleaner air.“It’s an incredible feeling to ride your bike—it feels like Copenhagen, basically,” says Vincent Thorne, a postdoctoral researcher in sustainable mobility at the Paris School of Economics, who moved to the city a little over a year ago.Since Par…

In the French capital, the burden of pollutants has fallen spectacularly over the past two decades. This is due to the harsh measures of an unpopular politician.

Paris said au revoir to cars. Air pollution maps reveal a dramatic change.

Air pollution fell substantially as the city restricted car traffic and made way for parks and bike lanes.

In Île-de-France, air pollution has been halved since 2004, according to Airparif. This increases life expectancy by an average of 10 months.

Air pollution in Paris region 'cut in half' over the past 20 years

Air pollution in the Paris region has been cut in half over the past two decades, according to a new study published by Airparif, an independent group that tracks air quality.

Nitrogen dioxide concentrations – a pollutant gas that increases the risk of death due to diabetes and stroke – have fallen by an average of 45% between 2014 and 2024, Airparif announced on Wednesday.