Thomas Samson, AFP | Paris under a blanket of fine particles from car exhausts and wood fires, on December 5, 2016.

Paris is suffering its worst and most prolonged winter pollution for at least 10 years, the Airparif agency that measures the levels said Wednesday.

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The peak is due to the combination of emissions from vehicles and from domestic wood fires, as well as near windless conditions that mean pollutants have not been dispersed, the agency said.

Paris authorities have imposed a “half traffic” measure for the second day running, in which only vehicles with odd-number licence plates are allowed in the city and surrounding suburbs. (On Tuesday, it was even numbers). Public transport is free for the second day running.

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The measures will continue on Thursday “if there is no improvement in air quality”.

City authorities have asked Parisians to “limit their travel by car and to prioritise car sharing as much as possible”.

Mayor Anne Hidalgo tweeted (see below): “Paris today: the proof that we need to reduce the presence of cars in the city.”

#Paris aujourd'hui. La preuve de la nécessité de réduire la place de la voiture en centre-ville #pollution pic.twitter.com/R10Tdu4o2Y — Anne Hidalgo (@Anne_Hidalgo) December 6, 2016

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

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