France Will Ban The Sale Of Petrol And Diesel Vehicles By 2040

France's environmental minister, Nicolas Hulot, has announced the country will ban the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040.

Announced as part of President Emmanuel Macron’s plan to “make the planet great again," the move is part of a larger initiative that seeks to make France carbon neutral by 2050.

To help speed the adoption of eco-friendly vehicles, Hulot said “the government will offer each French person a bonus to replace their diesel car dating before 1997 or petrol from before 2001 by a new or second-hand vehicle." There's no word on how much the incentive will be but the move should help to encourage citizens to upgrade to a more efficient vehicle.

The Telegraph reports Hulot acknowledged the initiative will be "tough" on automakers but said France's automotive industry is well equipped to handle the challenge. He also referred Volvo's plan to electricity every vehicle in its lineup by 2019.

France has a lot of work to do as the report indicates petrol and diesel vehicles made up 95.2 percent of new vehicles sales through the first half of the year. Hybrid vehicles clocked in at 3.5 percent, while electric vehicles were a distant third at 1.2 percent.

Despite the challenges, France joins a growing number of countries which are looking to ban vehicles powered exclusively by petrol or diesel engines.

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