PARIS BANS MODERN CLASSICS

Be careful visiting Paris in a modern classic. Pre-1997 vehicles are now excluded from the city centre on weekdays in a bid to reduce pollution levels. UK plates are no defence either, as random checkpoints are in force from 8am to 8pm. If you ignore the ban, a € 35 fine (rising to €65 next year) could result. Meanwhile, classic cars registered over 30 years ago are still permitted to drive in the city, although it may be worth taking a copy of the V5 with you to argue the point with any Gendarmes who aren’t clued up on non-French vehicles. “The only safe advice for those intending to visit France in British historic vehicles this summer would appear to be not to enter Paris unless you have made sure positively that you may do so,” warned Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs (FBHVC) communications director Geoff Lancaster.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo first unveiled plans to tackle smog in the French capital last year. Acting on figures from the World Health Organisation, Hidalgo moved to reduce the number of French deaths from fine-particle air pollution, which currently claim 42,000 lives a year.

Air quality certificates (enforced by way of coloured windscreen stickers) will classify vehicles into six categories depending on their pollution levels – under environmental minister Ségolène Royal, the rules become progressively tighter. By 2020, only post-2011 cars will be allowed to drive in the city.

Faced with spiralling deaths and tumbling air quality, other cities are certain to follow suit. Will this spell the end of decades- old Parisian classic institutions like Rétromobile? Only time – and the arguments of lobbyists like the FBHVC and FFVE – will tell.