After the lorries and coaches, according to French motorcyclists’ organization FFMC, the mayor of Paris is going to ban all motorcycles and scooters produced before 2000, from 1st July 2016.

Time for action: the French Federation of Angry Motorcyclists (FFMC) is calling for a demonstration on the 10th of October, in several French cities.

The video of the protest.

Manifestation FFMC : l’énorme colère des motards door Moto-Magazine

We talked to France Wolf, member of the FFMC’s national board. She justifies the national dimension of the motorcyclists’ demonstration against the traffic restrictions in Paris.

Why did FFMC decide to organize a national demonstration, when only a single city decided to ban some types of motorcycles?
“We’ve learned from 35 years of experience, that what is happening in Paris has a big chance of being copied elsewhere. The APP (atmosphere protection plan) zones announced by the previous Environment Minister, D. Batho, remain valid. They concern 38 cities in France. In the Parisian Region, the plan will concern, at mid term, all the near peripheral cities of Paris with the future Grand Paris project. Thousands of suburban commuters, currently using an old car or bike, due to the lack of public transport, will be obliged to scrap their vehicle and buy a new one. Socially, it’s a scandal: the eco-warriors have gone too far, given that they also vote for laws against waste and planned obsolescence. Our Parisian region’s branches have fought against these announcements from the start. The national federation must support them, every PTW user has an interest.”

The ban in Paris, only concerns powered two wheelers (PTW’s) produced before 2000 (a small number) and only during week days. Why does it concern all riders?
“That’s solidarity. The energetic transition law, voted in recently, gives the cities tools to apply zones with restricted mobility, including PTW’s in these restrictions. Don’t let these sort of policies be implemented. We will have to fight against them for many years afterwards, like we had to fight, against the 100 brake horsepower law, for example. If the PTW’s produced before 2000 are few in number, how van they be responsible for the air pollution in Paris? It would be smarter to let the people who have chosen a less polluting vehicle than a car carry on, and expect a natural renewing of the PTW fleet. The 2000 limit is only a beginning, this restriction will become more and more severe over time.”

It’s a fact that motorcycles and scooters are polluting, it’s an internal combustion engine. Doesn’t demonstrating show bikers as being unreasonably angry?
“Probably yes, some of our friends will point this out. But everything is polluting, business planes, the airport, chemical fertilizers for intensive agriculture, suburban supermarkets attracting thousands of vehicles, and so forth. It’s the limit that some politicians, who authorize intensive farms, or urban planning developments, which increases commuting distances, are now treating bikers as polluters. When we consider the light weight, the reduced road space, and the ease of parking, PTW’s are the vehicles the most suited to cities. This is exactly what the European parliament formalized recently in the mid-term transport review. The elected representative people in Paris don’t know that? We need to remind them that there are no diesel bikes, the diesel that Mrs. Hidalgo wants to eradicate before 2020. We will demonstrate to remind everyone that the motorcycle, in cities, is a solution, not a pollution.”

Find all the information on the demonstrations at www.ffmc.asso.fr

Paris wants a ban for certain cars as well. Read more here.