The days leading up spring turned out to be less than magical in Paris. The season the most popular for the French capital ended up blanketed in smog so thick that the prime minister needed to come up with a way to keep cars off the streets in the middle of the work week. Employing an idea used frequently in parts of Asia, where air pollution is chronic and relentless, cars with license plates starting with an even number were prohibited from driving one week day. Cars with odd numbers were barred the next.

In theory, the strategy was designed to cut in half traffic and pollution from cars. In actuality, many French people stayed true to their revolutionary spirit and