By 2030, the most famous Parisian avenue will be transformed from a busy arterial road into a green oasis, reducing space for cars and planting new trees.
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées, more commonly known simply as "the Champs-Élysées", is one of the most famous streets in Paris, the capital of France. It stretches for almost two kilometres through the north-western part of the city, connecting the Place de la Concorde to the east, with its obelisk, to the Place Charles de Gaulle to the west, where the Arc de Triomphe stands. Built in 1670, the avenue hosts the traditional 14 July parade every year to commemorate the storming of the Bastille, and forms the final stretch of the Tour de France, one of the most prestigious cycling races in the world. Now the Champs-Élysées is set to become an "extraordinary garden" — to use the words of the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, who made the announcement in the French weekly Le journal du dimanche.
The redevelopment initiative, designed by architect Philippe Chiambarettam and unveiled for the first time in 2019, plans to halve the space allocated to car traffic in order to increase the space reserved for pedestrians, and to raise the number of trees planted and green areas so as to improve air quality. What is currently — or at least was before the pandemic — a busy eight-lane arterial road will be transformed into a large park filled with cycle paths, pedestrian routes, play areas and much more. The works will likely not be completed by 2024, the year in which the Olympic Games will be held in the French capital: they are expected to last until 2030 and will involve expenditure of 250 million euros.
The push for a renewal of the area came from the Champs-Élysées committee: chaired by Jean-Noël Reinhardt, it brings together those who live and work along the avenue. Their goal is to make it more appealing to Parisians, who no longer frequent it: it is mostly tourists who wander among the gleaming shop windows. "This legendary location has lost its splendour over the past thirty years. It has been progressively abandoned by Parisians and has had to contend with numerous crises: the gilets jaunes, strikes, and the health and economic crisis," reads a press release issued by the committee, which warmly welcomed Hidalgo's announcement.
In addition to the Avenue des Champs-Élysées, the Place de la Concorde will also be redeveloped, along with the surroundings of the Eiffel Tower — which will gain fountains, ponds and green areas — and the Pont d'Iéna, the bridge that crosses the Seine connecting the tower to the Trocadéro, which will become a grassy walkway flanked by two rows of trees. These are just some of the moves the mayor is making to render her city greener, cleaner and more liveable. For never as much as in recent months have we become aware of the beauty of what surrounds us; the need to get in the car and go off somewhere has diminished, while the desire to take a simple stroll in the places we know has grown, rediscovering their scents, colours and sounds.
