• Four security perimeters

Prefect Laurent Nunez unveiled four security perimeters on Tuesday, November 28, in an interview with the newspaper Le Parisien. First of all, there is "an organizational perimeter, where only accredited people (athletes, staff, organization, journalists, service providers, etc.) or with a ticket," he said.

Then comes the protection perimeter, or "Silt" – from the Internal Security and Counter-Terrorism Law. "To get in, everyone is searched. This perimeter generally does not include local residents, except for the opening ceremony and to a limited extent for a few sites," he explains.

LIVE OLYMPIC GAMES PARIS | Here are the main areas where traffic restrictions will be put in place for the Paris
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— Le Parisien | Paris (@LeParisien_75) November 29, 2023

In addition to these two demarcated areas, there are traffic perimeters. "As close as possible to the site, the red: the principle is the prohibition of traffic, unless an exemption is granted, due to the significant pedestrian flow and the risk of car-ramming attacks or disruptions," according to the police prefect.

The last one, the blue one, will be wider: "We only want to let in by car those who live, work, or want to go to a shop or a restaurant," he continues, specifying that all these perimeters will be put online.

  • Varying duration of these restrictions

Traffic restrictions will be in place throughout the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Paris police prefect told Le Parisien that these zones "will only be activated during the competitions, two and a half hours before the start of the events and up to an hour after".

There will, however, be exceptions: the Olympic Village in Saint-Denis and the Paris Centre – Concorde, Invalides, Grand Palais, Champ-de-Mars, Trocadéro sector. For the latter, the venues will be closed to traffic a little before the start of the Olympics and during the competition, the restrictions could be effective "from 6:30 a.m. to midnight," according to Laurent Nunez.

"But again, on foot and by bike, these areas will be free to access. The restrictions only apply to motor vehicles," the police chief said.

  • QR codes and waivers

A platform will be opened in March-April 2024 for people who want to travel in the red restricted zones to obtain a derogation. "You will have a QR code to present during the checks," explained Laurent Nunez.

"You will have to register beforehand on a digital platform by providing a certain number of proofs, of address but not only. Shopkeepers could need it for deliveries, for example," the police prefect continued, adding that "access points, entry and exit, will be defined" to access these restricted areas.

The derogations will concern different types of public, according to Laurent Nunez: "Local residents who have car parks, those who visit vulnerable people, emergency and rescue vehicles, breakdown vehicles, etc. Taxis and PHVs should be allowed if they drop someone off and only if they have proof."

"The principle is a ban on motorized traffic, and the exception is a derogation," said the Paris police prefect.

As for the blue perimeter, there will be "no pre-registration", according to Laurent Nunez. "There will still be controls, we want to avoid transit traffic. People who enter this perimeter will have to be able to justify the reason for their trip."

  • Even tighter restrictions on the day of the Opening Ceremony

For the opening ceremony of the Games on the banks of the Seine, the prefect of police of Paris warns that the restrictions will be even stronger than during the rest of the competition.

"It's going to be more complicated... The perimeter of the driving ban will be wide. Above all, our idea is to activate the Silt protection perimeter, which will encompass the riverside dwellings several days before," he explains. "There, obviously, the entry of vehicles will be limited to the bare minimum. The public will be everywhere, on the high platforms, the low platforms. It's a strict perimeter of control, you'll have to be searched, show your credentials."

And Laurent Nunez continues: "On D-Day, July 26, we will have a red perimeter that will be very wide, more than the previous days. Activation will be done a few hours before the start of the ceremony and will end when it is over. Only people who have something to do with it will come in."

As for people who have a presence on the Seine and would like to invite relatives or friends to see the opening ceremony, there are no exceptions. "We have to register them on the platform" which will be online in a few months, says the prefect. "This will involve a declarative obligation that will be based on the inhabitant, with the production of the identities of the people invited." The same obligation will apply to houseboats used as accommodation.

With AFP

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