Paris Unveils Bold ‘Car Lanes’ Plan, Bicycles to Take Over City Streets by 2026

In a historic move that is sending shockwaves through the automotive industry, the city of Paris has announced that, effective 2026, it will be retooling its separated bike lanes to accommodate motor vehicles.

Starting April 1, private cars will be relegated to single-lane corridors at the far edges of roadways, while the rest of the street space will be dedicated to bicycles, cargo bikes, and electric cargo delivery vehicles.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo, long known for her visionary pro-cycling policies, declared that the city’s new Rues du Vélo initiative is simply “righting the wrongs of urban planning.”

“For too long, cyclists have been forced into tiny, unsafe lanes while cars take up the majority of the road,” Hidalgo said at a press conference held on the Champs-Élysées, now freshly painted with 14-meter-wide bike lanes and a single, two-meter-wide car lane. “We are simply ending the dominance of cars in our city. If you have a car, fine, but don’t expect any accommodation from the city. After all, we have been suffering under the impact of the automobile and its climate wrecking, polluting, noisy garbage for decades. My suggestion, just don’t drive.”

Seine River

A New Era of ‘Car Infrastructure’

Under the new plan, private vehicles will be restricted to a single 0.8-meter-wide lane on each side of major boulevards.

Other key infrastructure changes include:

🚲 Roundabouts Redesigned for Bikes – Cars may enter Paris’ famous roundabouts only with written permission and must yield to bicycles indefinitely.

🛑 Traffic Lights Adjusted for Cyclists – Signals will now default to green for bicycles, for the first half of the go period, and the last 10 seconds will enable cars to proceed with caution.

🚷 No Car Zones Expanded – The popular Paris Respire program, which restricts cars on weekends in all of central Paris, will be expanded to every day ending in the letter ‘y.’

Automakers in Uproar, Paris Cyclists Rejoice

French car manufacturers were quick to condemn the decision. “This is an outright war on drivers,” said a spokesperson for Renault, struggling to be heard over the sound of celebratory bicycle bells in the background. “Where are we supposed to put all the SUVs?”

Meanwhile, Parisian cyclists have already embraced the transformation. “For the first time in my life, I was able to ride without fear of being flattened by a delivery van,” said one elated commuter. “It felt… almost illegal.”

What’s Next for Paris?

As part of the transition, Paris will also introduce a new Car Tax based on vehicle width, with SUVs being charged at a rate of €100 per millimeter over 1.5 meters wide. All funds collected will go toward planting more trees—inside former parking lots.

Hidalgo has been defiant in the face of criticism of the new plan, especially from SUV-loving suburban voters who are faced with a crisis of faith and may have to take public transit.

“F’ the haters,” Hidalgo said.