The point on the mobilizations everywhere in France
- Blocked or slowed roads
In Rennes, traffic on the ring road was disrupted by around 400 people from 7 a.m. on at least six blocking points, and by fires, resulting in 45 km of traffic jams at 8:30 a.m., according to the prefecture and Bison Futé. In Nantes, traffic was also extremely disrupted due to actions by protesters on the ring road with “several kilometers of traffic jams observed on both sides” and an “tendency to worsen”, according to Bison Futé. In Caen, the ring road was cut in both directions by demonstrators.
- Hindered Logistics Center
In the north of Lille, a hundred demonstrators occupy two large roundabouts serving the regional transport center (CRT) of Lesquin, a major logistics center, causing disruption to the A1 linking Paris to Lille, and the A23 in the direction of Valenciennes, indicated Rémy Quéant, secretary general FO Transport Lille. “Many warehouses will not be delivered today”he explained to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
- Public transport affected
In Rennes, demonstrators on the SNCF tracks and a fire under a bridge stopped the circulation of trains on the Rennes / Saint-Brieuc line, according to the prefecture. The city’s bus network is also affected because the main depot is blocked by demonstrators, according to Star, manager.
Montpellier and Quimper airports saw their traffic interrupted on Tuesday morning due to the air traffic controllers’ strike, according to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC). The Montpellier-Méditerranée platform reopened at 9 a.m., while that of Quimper-Pluguffan will remain closed until 2 p.m., causing delays. The administration had asked the airlines to cancel preventively Tuesday and Wednesday 20% of their flights to Paris-Orly, Marseille, Toulouse and Bordeaux.
Beyond airports, work stoppages by air traffic controllers affect en-route air navigation centers (CRNA, management of aircraft transiting through French airspace), with repercussions for all European traffic.
In Marseille, even if the garbage collectors are still not officially on strike, the waste is piling up in several districts, and in particular on the avenue du Prado or the Boulevard Perier, in the wealthy districts. “This time it’s not a frontal movement (…) we are trying to adapt to the attacks on our right to strike, the agents are very creative”, explains to AFP Véronique Dolot, of the CGT in the metropolis, recalling the requisitions during the last movement against the arduousness, in the fall. In Le Havre, around 50 people continued on Tuesday to block the center dedicated to water purification and waste management, preventing employees from taking up their posts or taking out garbage trucks.
In Lille, even before the 2:30 p.m. demonstration, an undeclared procession formed in the center before 8 a.m., marching in front of the Regional Council, the Lille train station, before joining a mobilized high school, activists said. The main entrance to Lille Flandres station has been temporarily closed, SNCF said.