Parking Mad Paris

Any visitor to Paris who’s been brave enough to rent a car knows all about the problems of driving there (try negotiating the giant roundabout at the Arc de Triomphe in the rush hour!)

And then there’s the parking. If you happen to choose a forbidden area, you could find a dreaded sabot de Denver (‘Denver boot’ or wheel clamp) when you return.

And don’t think it’s any better for the locals. One anonymous car-owner, apparently fed up with looking for a place to park his car, has paid 470,000 euros (£404,000 / $662,000) for a prime spot on the bank of the River Seine in the heart of the city.

It was put up for auction by the Paris City Hall for a starting price of 200,000 euros (£172,000 / $281,000), but the bidding soon went mad. The final purchase price is said to be roughly the equivalent of that for a three-room apartment in a more modest neighbourhood of Paris.

by Andy Moreton

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