The installation or extension of temporary terraces was one of the special measures to respond to the Covid-19 health crisis. In all, 3,618 permits have been granted since May 2020, with 1,483 of these for terraces on road surfaces in spaces such as on-street parking, traffic lanes and chamfered street corners.

With the application period extended to 31 March, bar and restaurant owners can request the regularisation of provision terraces and obtain an ordinary permit for the use of public roads to install terraces. This can be done telematically here.

The permanence of the terrace will always depend on gaining express approval of the technical reliability of the structure and compliance with accessibility criteria, distances and guaranteed space for people to circulate, as set out in the by-law.

Terraces on road surfaces

Terraces on road surfaces must use one of the seven authorised platform designs which were approved last summer to ensure accessibility, visibility, space for vehicles and services and access to facilities and car parks. This will enable provisional elements to be removed, such as concrete blocks and yellow bollards.

No parts of parasols can reach to within 20 centimetres of the outer limit of the platform, and the use of windbreaks or plant tubs is not permitted between the platform and the pavement.

Owners of establishments with terraces and extensions in road surfaces can apply for subsidies to help them change their furniture, with up to four million euros earmarked for this in all.

Terraces on pavements

Terraces on pavements will be studied case by case, according to the criteria in the by-law, to maintain continuity, avoid dispersion and fragmentation, ensure space for others to circulate, ensure accessibility and that platforms fit in well with the surroundings.

If no request is made to continue to operate a terrace, the administration will consider the establishment as having renounced it. Permit requests will also be denied in the following cases:

• Repeated infringements of a serious or very serious nature in the six-months up to 31 December 2021.
• Saturation of establishments which threatens the balance of activities and the needs of the resident population.