Anne Hidalgo, the farewell to the mayor who has made Paris more sustainable and more social

ParisAt any traffic light in Paris at 8 a.m., a crowd of bicycles gathers at the front. On some streets, like Rue Rivoli, in front of the Tuileries Garden, the enormous number of bikes at any time of day is surprising. They far exceed the number of cars. The fight against private vehicles and the promotion of sustainable transport has been one of the pillars –and, surely, the most visible one– of the twelve years of socialist Anne Hidalgo as mayor of Paris, the first woman to hold the position. "It is essential to transform the city to adapt it to climate change," she argued in the early years of her mandate.

Hidalgo, 66, will hand over the reins this Sunday to the new mayor of the city, the also socialist Emmanuel Grégoire. The Frenchwoman of Spanish origin –she was born in San Fernando (Cádiz) and emigrated to France with her parents when she was two years old– is leaving a less polluting city thanks to her plan to turn streets into pedestrian areas, promote cycling, reduce parking spaces, increase the price of parking zones –which cover almost the entire city– and reduce speed.

Paris has almost 500 kilometers of cycle lanes –many of them created in recent years– and, in a decade, bicycle use has tripled. The progression is so significant that in 2024, travel by this two-wheeled vehicle (11.2%) surpassed that by private vehicle (4.3%). To compare with Barcelona, bike journeys account for only 2.3% while private vehicles represent almost 20% of journeys. In 2024, the magazine Time included the mayor of Paris among the 100 most influential people in the world for the climate.

While Hidalgo has championed all these mobility changes to favor the fight against climate change, some decisions have been controversial and have divided Parisians. A large part of the residents who have to travel by car and transporters do not approve of the mayor's management.

According to an Ipsos poll, only 49% of Parisians are in favor of reducing speed to 50 km/h on the ring roads surrounding the city and only 58% are in favor of limiting it to 30 km/h within the French capital. The increase in street parking fees has also caused discontent, which can reach up to 18 euros per hour in the city center for the most polluting vehicles.

Public housing

Anne Hidalgo will also be remembered for having created the municipal police, for having made it possible for citizens to swim in the Seine, and for her commitment to social policies. During her 12 years in office, she has been involved in welcoming immigrants and has promoted affordable public housing, both for rent and for purchase. In the city, around 25% of housing is social housing, a figure higher than in most European capitals.

However, public housing policies have not prevented – let alone solved – the problem of housing prices in Paris. As in other major European cities, extremely high prices are driving families and the middle classes to the outskirts and are one of the main obstacles to living there. The price per square meter ranges from 30 to 40 euros, but in some neighborhoods it can go up to 50 euros.

Among the most negative points is the debt accumulated by the city. Hidalgo is leaving behind a historic debt of around 9.7 billion euros, 133% more than twelve years ago. The mayor's term in office also divides Parisians. According to the Ipsos survey, only 46% of the city's inhabitants rate her management as good or excellent, while 54% believe it has been mediocre or bad.

Uncommunicative and authoritarian

Hidalgo has always projected an image of a friendly and approachable mayor, but her political rivals have accused her of having an uncooperative demeanor and being too authoritarian. She defends herself and assures that the criticisms have been amplified by the fact that she is "a woman of the left, an environmentalist, and of immigrant origin." However, the mayor has been criticized by people within her own party, including Emmanuel Grégoire. The new mayor was her number two for five years, but then he distanced himself from Hidalgo and had bitter public confrontations with her.

Last Sunday night, when Grégoire won the municipal elections and rode his bike to the town hall, Hidalgo was waiting for him to hand over the keys to the city. The two of them shared an emotional embrace, leaving behind the confrontation that had marked their relationship in recent times. There is nothing like an electoral victory to end the distance.