A bus-bike lane (in the center) and a cycle lane have been added to the quai de la posse, to the detriment of automobile lanes.

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F. Brenon / 20Minutes

  • Nantes Métropole has just announced its wish to maintain most of the new pedestrian zones and cycle paths.

  • However, it will come back to two controversial developments, Quai de la Fosse and Pont Saint-Mihiel.

After the experiment, it's time for decisions.

This Monday, Nantes metropolis unveiled its choices as to the future of the new areas for bicycles and pedestrians set up everywhere in the city, at the exit of the first confinement.

Not surprisingly, the majority of these 43 facilities, including 21 km of cycling facilities, will be made permanent.

"We have assessed the situation as objectively as possible," insists Johanna Rolland, president of Nantes Métropole.

All parties, cyclists, traders, residents, associations, etc. have been consulted.

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Without going into all the details, you should know that all the measures relating to pedestrianization will therefore come into force definitively.

For example, streets closed to cars in the evening (rue Joffre, rue Léon-Blum, etc.) will become so again when restaurants reopen.

The majority of the cycle paths that had appeared (like the cycle track on rue d'Allonville) will not move either, even if ad hoc adaptations may take place.

“Most of them have shown very good results,” says Nicolas Martin, assistant for soft mobility.

For example, there has been an 89% increase in the number of bicycles on the Anne-de-Bretagne bridge, an increase also on the rue de Strasbourg.

Generally speaking, it's + 10% of cyclists between 2019 and 2020. "

Rue d'Allonville in Nantes - Clara Le Nagard / 20 Minutes

Copy revised for the quai de la Fosse and the Saint-Mihiel bridge

However, the metropolis will review its copy on several subjects, in particular because of the traffic jams that certain developments have caused.

First, the Quai de la Fosse (where a car lane in each direction had been removed) will find an additional lane but only in the “outgoing” direction, from the city center to the west, from the end February.

"Opinions were very divided but the bus-bike route created a lot of congestion," recognizes Nicolas Martin.

So we decided to free the wharf.

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Second black point, the Saint-Mihiel bridge (entirely pedestrianized and with a two-way cycle) will also reopen to cars, in one direction only, to “find a balance between the different modes of transport”.

The metropolis has already announced that it would not hesitate to close it temporarily, especially in anticipation of car-free Sundays, the first of which should take place this year.

The city at 30 will stay that way

If a reflection must also take place on these "meeting zones", the marking of which is considered insufficient, the passage of the city at 30 km / h is for its part settled, after five months of experimentation.

This reduction in speed, which aims to increase user safety and reduce noise pollution, will be maintained.

But is it well respected by motorists?

“There were a few checks but we are still in the pedagogy, says Nicolas Martin.

We still have to give people time to adapt.

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  • Pedestrians

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