The Paris city council adopted a motion that bans SUVs from the city in response to an alleged road rage incident resulting in the death of a cyclist.
Mayor Anne Hidalgo, a member of the Socialist Party, supports the council's move and says SUVs could become "weapons" against other citizens, The Telegraph reported.
The city council on Friday also called on the government to bar any marketing material that promotes the use of sports utility vehicles.
For the council's motion to take effect, President Emmanuel Macron's government would need to sign off on the law, which had been proposed by Ian Brossat, a communist senator for Paris, earlier this month.
Brossat also has introduced a proposal in the French Senate to grant local authorities the power to ban vehicles weighing over 1.8 tonnes, EU Today reported.
Last month, 27-year-old cyclist Paul Varry died after being hit by an SUV in Paris following an alleged road rage incident. The Mercedes' driver has been charged with murder.
"Paul was murdered," Hidalgo said early last week, The Telegraph reported. "The car kills, it is a weapon when used in this way."
Critics of the city council's motion blame road violence on the Hidalgo's "chaotic" urban planning.
"The city of Paris has an immense responsibility for these serious accidents," Aurélie Pirillo, a republican councillor, said.
"Why are there so many of them? Because it has become anarchy in Paris. This is where your chaotic management of mobility leads."
Republican Councilor David Alphand accused the mayor of "exploiting" Varry's death in order to advance her "political agenda."
SUVs comprise 25% of private vehicles in Paris. The city said the vehicles were responsible for 10% more accidents than other vehicles, and added that statistics show they are more fatal for the victims they hit.
A breakdown of Paris traffic shows more than 50% is by pedestrians, 30% by public transportation, 11% by bike, and 4% by autos.
"Motorists kill," said Emmanuelle Pierre-Marie, the Green mayor of the 12th arrondissement of Paris.
"The public space has become the daily theater of this danger exacerbated by increasingly massive motorized vehicles. We must go even further to protect Parisians."
Pierre-Marie was attacked by a motorcyclist while riding her bike last summer.
Earlier this year, Paris raised the price of parking for SUV drivers.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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