Paris gears up to fight air pollution, imposes traffic restrictions

The French authorities have decided to restrict vehicle use by imposing alternating traffic on December 6 in Paris and its suburbs after air pollution reached high levels in the region.

Only cars with an even number, electric or hybrid vehicles and vehicles with more than three people on board are allowed to drive on Tuesday, while public transport is free for the entire day, Xinhua news agency quoted Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo as saying on Monday.

She also called on citizens to use clean modes of transport such as Velib and Autolib, which are public sharing services for bicycles and electric cars during "this particularly long episode of air pollution".

The Airparif Association, an environmental body responsible for monitoring the air quality of Ile-de-France, expected the pollution index to be high on Tuesday due to increased pollutant of PM10, particulate matter measuring less than 10 microns.