Hoping to rid itself of thick smog and air pollution, Paris took a fraction of its drivers off the road Monday.

French newspaper Le Monde reports that by banning drivers with even-numbered license plates.

Officials say the smog is a yearly occurance and happens at the start of spring because of weather patterns in the area.

Air quality observatory Airparif announced that levels of PM10, a pollutant released by cars, in the air had , which triggered authorities to implement emergency measures. Scientistss say PM10 can enter your lungs and and, at high enough levels, cancer.

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In the U.S., as weather.com meteorologist Nick Wiltgen noted, the EPA standard for healthy air versus France's 50 micrograms, meaning the Paris ban was a strict reaction.

Emergency vehicles, food delivery trucks and cars with three or more people were excluded from the ban.

Officials were pleased with the results today, however, and thought it was effective enough that it wouldn't be necessary Tuesday.

Parisian authorities were already working to eliminate the smog days before deciding on the even number policy.

The Guardian reports that officials in Paris lowered the speed limit to 12 miles per hour within the city and .

Some residents, like Frederic Lebel, are not pleased with the policy.

"We should give more place to hydrogen, electricity, hybrid cars. I don't believe at all in this alternating traffic system, I don't believe (it works)," Lebel told the Associated Press.

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