She transformed Paris for tourists — and divided the city

Mayor Anne Hidalgo has prioritized pedestrians and cyclists in transforming Paris. (Credit: Daniel Leal/AFP/POOL/Getty Images via CNN Newsource)

Anyone visiting Paris just over a decade ago would doubtless have been charmed by the city’s timeless attractions — brasseries serving delicious food, museums crammed with famous works of art, boulevards of chic stores — all overlooked by the sparkling lights of the Eiffel Tower.

But despite being home to one of Europe’s busiest metro systems, they would’ve found Paris still very much ruled by la voiture. Back then, the French capital’s central road networks crawled with automobiles. Pedestrians were squeezed onto narrow sidewalks and, on the terraces of the city’s cafés, customers were served exhaust fumes with their coffee and croissant.

Today, Paris is different. Tourists stroll more freely than ever on pedestrianized streets, breathing cleaner air. For those wanting to get around by bike, there are hundreds of miles of cycle lanes to transport them safely across town.

Much of this is down to one woman: Anne Hidalgo, a Spanish immigrant who rose to become the city’s first female mayor, and one of its most dynamic in modern times. She’s now one of Paris’ most globally recognizable leaders, particularly following her symbolic swim in the Seine during the 2024 Olympics, highlighting her years-long campaign to clean up the once-dirty river.

But while tourists may have cause to thank Hidalgo as she bows out of office this month after 12 transformative years, many Parisians are dissatisfied about the state she has left their city in.

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Reclaiming the streets

Beyond the pedestrianized streets and bike lanes, the familiar cacophony of drivers honking their frustration is, if anything, louder than ever — as are the grumbles from those who rely on buses now snarled in endless jams.

“Boulevard des Batignolles is constantly jammed,” remarks 73-year-old Katherine, who has experienced decades of life on the wide Parisian thoroughfare during her time as a resident of the surrounding 9th district. “Sometimes seven buses get stuck in a row!”

Addressing gridlocked traffic and getting citizens walking was one of the priorities for Hidalgo, a member of France’s Socialist Party, when she was elected mayor in 2014. Her administration removed parking spaces and banned cars from entire streets and plazas. The number of cars in the city has been drastically reduced.

This has gone down well with many of the millions of tourists who visit Paris each year. “Making it walkable is definitely number one for me,” said Leon Crawford, a 23-year-old structural engineer visiting from Virginia with his girlfriend.

“That’s something I appreciate being able to do. The fact that we’re able to come here for a vacation and not have to worry about renting a car.”

Hidalgo’s pedestrianization drive gained some local support from parents, particularly a “Rues aux Ecoles” or “Streets for Schools” campaign that permanently blocked traffic on 100 streets around public schools.

“In a very concrete-heavy neighbourhood with few parks, we’ve gained extra outdoor space for kids, or adults,” says Théophile Chamard, a father of three whose home overlooks Rue de la Bienfaisance, where motorized transport has been deprioritized. “The street is an extra soccer field.”

His son, six-year-old Balthazar Chamard, agreed: “It’s so great, because there’s less smoke without the cars.”

Paris has won international praise for its efforts to curb the automobile. The Washington-based Urban Institute cited the city as a model for urban planning and pedestrianization. Ask visitors in the traffic-free streets and you’ll also hear praise for the environment Hidalgo has helped create.

“I love walking in Paris. I think it’s my favorite part,” says Yulia Hutsalencko, a 32-year-old Ukrainian refugee from Kyiv.

John and Darvla Keogh, an Irish couple who have been returning to the city for almost 40 years, also hymned the changes. “There’s always something new to see; there’s always something better about the place,” said John.

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A step too far?

But not all of Hidalgo’s electorate are here for the fume-free boulevarding — many see life in Paris worsening under her tenure. And while she defied critics to secure a second term in 2019, albeit with a low voter turnout, many see her exit from office as long overdue.

Much of her unpopularity is rooted in the traffic management policies of her Paris Réspire (Paris Breathes) campaign, with complaints that pushing vehicles from the centre has merely made other roads more congested.

Indeed, traffic jams in Paris have risen four per cent since 2015, while public transport has also taken a hit, with bus use dropping by 31 per cent between 2018 and 2024. Grégoire de Lasteyrie, vice-president of Île-de-France Mobilités, a government body that oversees public transport in Paris, says the focus has been elsewhere. “Simply put, the bus network has not been a priority issue for the Hidalgo administration.”

And while Paris is now seen as a paragon for cities looking to integrate cycling networks into existing infrastructure, again this is progress that many residents feel was a step too far.

With the surge in cycling a point of debate in this weekend’s vote to elect Hidalgo’s successor, her opponents have seized on the issue. “We haven’t made room for everyone in the city, and the boom in cycling has put pedestrians in danger,” said Rachel-Flore Pardo, a 32-year-old lawyer running for mayor in Paris’ 17th district.

In 2020, Hidalgo announced her plan to make Paris the “global capital of biking” through her plan vélo, or “bike plan.” Previously ranked worse than London and Madrid, Paris has now surpassed them in air quality, according to a 2024 IQair report.

For those who use bicycles — mainly working-age adults — it’s been successful. Close to a third of Parisians have started cycling more, with nine per cent now commuting on two wheels, In 2025, Paris was crowned Europe’s best cycling city in one ranking. Less successfully, the road redesign has also seen a reported increase in hospitalizations among cyclists and pedestrians.

Solal Roux, a 23-year-old Parisian is among those who feel the benefit. “Hidalgo really changed my life, because now I’m able to bike on every street,” he says. For young, trendy and able-bodied Parisians, benefits include new walking and cycling by the Seine, where previously cars once reigned. “It’s really nice, especially in the summer.”

Roux says he has no safety concerns but concedes others may not fare so well in situations where the cycle network meets roads still open to cars. Hutsalencko admits she struggles. “Parisians don’t really respect the rules of the road,” she says. “It’s a stereotype, but it’s true: They’re super-fast, always in a rush.”

Juliette Levha, a 21-year-old student from Quebec, relies on bikes to get around the city, but says that in some areas inadequate provisions for cyclists make it too dangerous. “It’s true that when there’s no clear bike lanes, it’s so scary.”

A surge in cyclists has left some pedestrians feeling intimidated. “It’s dangerous for pedestrians,” says Bernadette, a 66-year-old university teacher. “Cyclists are always cutting in front of cars, running red lights and generally doing whatever they want.

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‘Everything’s changed’

Some tourists are unfazed. Zach, one of a group of students on spring break from the University of Kentucky, told CNN that compared to other European destinations, the cycling scene in Paris seems orderly. “No cyclists running through you every ten seconds,” he says. “You guys are advanced compared to Amsterdam.”

Even with improvements in air quality and urban mobility, many locals remain dissatisfied. Opinion polls show 59 per cent feel the city isn’t moving in the right direction, up from 36 per cent before Hidalgo took office, according to a 2023 IFOP poll.

“She is constantly criticized, but still reelected: I’ve never understood it,” says Lionel Pradal, a bistro owner on the bustling Rue des Martyrs. “Parisians never go out and vote, and then after they complain. This is the problem with French people, it’s always the same.”

Back in the 9th district, resident Katherine laments changes to the Parisian cityscape, particularly in Place de Dublin, near her home. “Everything’s changed,” she says. “This plaza was great,” noting that its cobblestones, captured on canvas in Impressionist Gustave Caillebotte’s 1877 painting “Paris Street, Rainy Day,” were smothered in tarmac and asphalt as part of Hidalgo’s urban transformation.

Though he’s a fan of the car-free streets, Théophile Chamard cautions against rapid transformation. “Paris is a 1,500-year-old city, there’s no urgency to change it all,” he says. “We need to adapt it slowly to the needs of our inhabitants. But sometimes, when you renovate an old palace, it all comes crashing down.”

What Paris’ 40-million-plus annual visitors can expect in the years to come will depend greatly on who succeeds Hidalgo. In polling ahead of second-round elections on March 22, her Socialist Party colleague Emmanuel Grégoire was in pole position, but by no means a shoo-in for victory.

Hidalgo, whose tenure endured the November 2015 deadly terrorist attacks that killed 132 people, the Covid-19 pandemic and the April 2019 fire at the Notre-Dame Cathedral, meanwhile sees the redefinition of Paris as a city of walkable streets and cycle lanes as one of her key legacies.

“When I see parents bringing their kids to school on the bike lanes, it brings me to tears,” she recently told reporters. “I tell myself, wow, I’m like them: a Parisian who dreamed of living better in her city, and I was able to open that path.”

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