What will the next years bring us in terms of radars? If we already know the official program for 2024, then it is more vague. ZFE, “car sharing”, sound, city radars… To learn more about these future controls, we might as well contact the first people concerned: their manufacturers! Enough to outline the (very) unofficial calendar of tomorrow’s serial flashers…

ZFE radars: no earlier than 2025 or 2026

The dreaded ZFEs are in trouble: they have been reduced in most of the metropolises that have become “vigilance areas”, remaining effective only in Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Strasbourg and Rouen. Regarding the famous ZFE radars, they are not for tomorrow, knowing that the tender for their development has not yet been published… Which may delay their commissioning until 2026. In a word, the project is at the “scolding” stage. However, cautious revenue projections are still being put forward: around €23.5 million collected by metropolitan areas in 2025 (per 500,000 PV) and double that in 2026… a municipal election year. Did not win! Pending, The SEZ is being talked about less and lesseven if Lyon and Strasbourg announced a ban on pre-2006 diesels (Crit’Air 4) in 2024.

Reserved band radars: no earlier than the end of 2025

Present on the outskirts of large cities (Annecy, Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Paris, Strasbourg, etc.), radars responsible for monitoring the carpool lane, transport or “clean” cars are getting a lot of attention, but still not gaining traction. In fact, the selected systems – Fareco and Pryntec systems – are included two-year experimental phase…Knowing that there might be a question about their approval, in the long run, for them to automatically penalize free riders (it’s just a video version at the moment). And how about the account observation of the “Olympic routes” of the ring road of Paris during the 2024 Olympics? Rumor has it that license plate readers can request a “white list” of vehicles that are allowed to drive in the left lane as part of the event.

City speed cameras: no decree yet

At the end of 2023, France was supposed to have 700 (including 200 active), but there are none, and those installed are not in operation. And not for nothing: The government has announced that the installation of city radars will now be left to the discretion of local authorities. A surprising distinction, knowing that in 2019 the state awarded a €149 million government contract to two radar leaders, Idemia and Parifex. What happens when the “deal” is clearly broken? No one complains about the topic. However, it can be said that many cities are interested in these city radars. Problem: Until an ordinance is published that allows mayors to install their own radars, no one knows “how.” According to the latest news, its publication may come soon. This is a year and a half late.

Congestion Radars: Already installed, but…

This is a little-known system that, nevertheless, deserves our attention: dynamic weighing of heavy trucks. Two French companies, ECM and Sterela, are installing “overload radars” capable of weighing moving trucks on behalf of the state. On the A79, A63 and A9 in particular, these devices consist of road loops, number plate readers and cameras measure axle weight and detect overloaded trucks. It is about fighting this dangerous practice (extending the braking distance), which destroys the roads and creates unfair competition for legal carriers! Note that in their current state, these dynamic weighing systems require the presence of an “acceptance committee” at the collection point to impose a fine. But ultimately the goal is to automate the controls like a speed radar. Condition? Cross-border agreements between the member states of the European Union allow prosecute foreign truckers in their countries of origin. This is not yet the case, but as we have been assured, regulatory developments are ongoing. As a result, the first automatic fines may arrive by the end of 2024. This time you can only be happy!

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