Expensive parking in Paris: Is the SUV ban for Germany now?

Expensive parking in Paris: Is the SUV ban for Germany now?

In Paris, a drastic reform of parking fees for heavy cars was recently introduced, which triggered enormous political pressure in Germany. This measure obliges visitors who use heavy vehicles such as SUVs to pay significantly higher parking tariffs. With the increase in triple, drivers now have to pay a proud 18 euros for an hour in the city center and even 225 euros for six hours.

The Federal Managing Director of German Environmental Aid, Jürgen Resch, sees an important step in these changes. "Something is moving in Germany - people are tired that ever larger and more dangerous monster trucks are driving through their city and clogging the streets," said Resch. As a result, environmental aid has already submitted 324 applications for higher parking fees for such vehicles in Germany. According to Resch, the interest of the population is considerable because over 21,000 people have supported these applications.

The new regulation in Paris

The Paris city administration justifies the new rules with the high environmental impact that starts from heavy vehicles. The regulation includes electric cars with a weight of two tons and petrol or hybrid vehicles from 1.6 tons and excludes private parking garages. However, residents, craftsmen and people with disabilities are specifically excluded in order not to endanger their mobility.

The reactions to the model from Paris in Germany are mixed. While some cities, such as Bonn, have already promised higher fees, others, such as the city administration of Potsdam, show little willing to take such measures. The Mayor of Tübingen, Boris Palmer, expressed skepticism and described the introduction of such fees as unrealistic because he expects legal hurdles.

political pressure and possible changes

Environmental aid is urging the parking fees according to vehicle sizes, which is already being implemented in cities such as Koblenz, Aachen and soon in Cologne. Resch explained that the introduction of an approval tax, analogous to France, is also desired by various mayors and municipal councils. "A regulation like in Paris in Germany would also mean that we would finally see smaller and lighter cars on the street," he added.

This shows progress, but it remains to be seen whether political and public support for such measures in Germany is sufficient. While cities like Hamburg have already issued new fee regulations, a comprehensive implementation of changes according to vehicle size is a long time coming.

Environmental aid still remains optimistic and sees a clear sign of change in the current situation. "The discussion about higher parking fees shows that awareness of environmental issues and traffic safety is growing," said Resch. The question remains exciting whether German cities will follow the example from Paris and adapt their parking fees to the size of the vehicle in order to promote a traffic turnaround towards more environmentally friendly cars.