Paris: the most polluted metro and RER stations

According to Île-de-France Mobilités, 9.4 million journeys are made every day by Ile-de-France residents thanks to the region's extensive public transport network (1,500 bus lines, 14 metro lines, 9 streetcar lines and 13 train and RER lines).

While many users take public transport without question, others are more concerned, particularly about the PM10 fine-particle pollution present in stations and stations. So, this Monday, January 22, 2024, Airparif (the Île-de-France air quality observatory) is publishing for the first time, and in partnership with Île-de-France Mobilités, a precise mapping of fine particle levels recorded on the platforms of 44 metro and RER stations. " This assessment is based specifically on reliable measurements (...) permanent or at least weekly, to take account of variations in levels from one hour to the next ", says Airparif.

So, what are the results? Which are the most polluted stations in Paris and the Île-de-France region? Of these 44 stations and stations in the RATP and SNCF network, three are in the"red", with high levels of fine particle pollution, i.e. above 480µg/m3, the maximum threshold recommended by the FrenchNational Health Safety Agency (Anses). These are the Jaurès (lines 2 and 5), Oberkampf (line 5) and Belleville (lines 2 and 11) metro stations.

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For the rest of this study, 31 other stations and subway stations have " average levels ", i.e. levels between 140 and 480µg/m3. These include Auber (RER A), Pereire-Levallois (RER C), Neuilly-Porte Maillot (RER C), Musée d'Orsay (RER C) and Magenta (RER E) stations, as well as Stalingrad (lines 2 and 5), Gare du Nord (lines 2, 4 and 5), Châtelet (lines 1, 4, 7, 11 and 14), Alexandre Dumas (line 2) and Saint-Ambroise (line 9)... Finally, ten stations and train stations have a " low level " of fine particles, i.e. below 140 µg/m3.

Following the publication of this mapping, which will be completed in June with a total of 400 stations analyzed, Île-de-France Mobilités (IDFM) president Valérie Pécresse asked operators RATP and SNCF to deploy concrete actions"to combat air pollution in tunnels". This includes renewing and reinforcing fans on the network operated by RATP, starting with the three most polluted stations on the network. Another measure taken? The deployment "as quickly as possible" of a " system that reduces fine particle emissions generated when trains brake ", particularly on RER line A, as well as metro lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 9.