Each year, Toulousains lose 158 hours in traffic. - Alexandre GELEBART / 20 Minutes

  • The municipal elections are held on March 15 and 22, 2020. Each Monday, 20 Minutes addresses a theme of the campaign. Today, mobility and projects to reduce the place of the car in the city.
  • The Pink City is suffocated on a daily basis by traffic jams while, at the same time, soft modes are constantly developing.
  • The candidates for the municipal elections deliver their proposals to improve the situation, from the multiplication of zones 30 to the prohibition of the car on certain symbolic axes.

Last year, instead of being stuck in the passenger compartment of their cars waiting in traffic, the people of Toulouse could have watched, propped up on their sofa, the equivalent of 140 episodes of Game of Thrones .

According to the latest study from the GPS manufacturer TomTom, the residents of the Pink City lost 158 ​​hours in their car in 2019. Congestion that spins the drone, even to the municipal candidates who all decided not to hide the question of the car place in town.

Develop large infrastructures

To reduce their presence, most of them propose the development of public transport infrastructures. Jean-Luc Moudenc (LR supported by LREM) puts forward his project for the third metro line, an “anti-traffic jam” solution which should make it possible to have “90,000 vehicles per day” less on city roads. His predecessor at the Capitol, Pierre Cohen, remains committed to his tram line project. He thus wants to finish from the Palais de justice to the Matabiau station, via the banks of the Canal du Midi.

While the candidate of the National Rally imagines for its part the extension of lines A and B on municipalities of the metropolis and the tram line T2, from Toulouse-Blagnac airport to Matabiau station. Pauline Salingue of the New Anti-Capitalist Party is in favor of studying a Toulouse RER, like most of the candidates.

Avoid traveling

So many projects that could not be the only solution. Some candidates recommend avoiding even the arrival of cars in town. Socialist Nadia Pellefigue, head of the “New Energy” list, proposes to create the seven gates of Toulouse, hubs where everyone could leave their car to take shuttles and other public transport. This measure would thus free up space in the city to build the Octagon park, which consists of reducing the place of the car on the boulevards of the city center for the benefit of gentle modes and greening.

"We are committed to making the island of Ramier the" Central park "of Toulouse but it is not enough. We must create a real green lung ... the Octagon park" @NadiaPellefigue @UNEtoulouse #ToulouseRespire pic .twitter.com / nQsmBcTKL0

- André Ducournau (@AndreDucournau) February 10, 2020

Antoine Maurice d'Archipel Citoyen is advocating for the creation of third places and satellite offices that would allow some to reduce their home-work journey or the creation of a "time office" with the big companies of the agglomeration to think for example about the issue of telework.

Especially in cars, given how dangerous it is for a cyclist or a pedestrian to circulate, even in the hypercentre. As long as the place of the car is not reduced (which Moudenc refuses to do), neither pollution nor insecurity for soft modes will be reduced.

- 🤓 Vincent Laurent 🌻 (@greenvincent) February 13, 2020

Whether left or right, all focus on the development of soft modes to achieve this or the development of 30 zones throughout the city. The outgoing mayor has thus announced that he intends to triple the number of trips by bicycle and for this he will devote 10 million euros per year if he is re-elected.

[#ParlonsProjet] In order to be able to travel by # bike throughout the city of #Toulouse in a secure manner, we are committed to resolving discontinuities on the cycle network. Find our commitment
⬇️⬇️⬇️ pic.twitter.com/BY5aif3hRw

- Jean-Luc Moudenc (@jlmoudenc) February 15, 2020

Franck Biasotto, the dissident municipal councilor supported by the MoDem, plans to redefine the bicycle network and better co-opt soft modes, to avoid conflicts of use between pedestrians, scooters and two wheels.

From one bridge to another

He is not hostile to the possibility of studying the possibility of pedestrianizing the rue de Metz. For years, it has been a request from the Toulouse association "Deux pieds deux Roues" which has campaigned so that this axis going from rue de Metz to place Saint-Cyprien, via Pont-Neuf, is no longer used daily by 9,000 cars. A proposal taken up by the list led by Nadia Pellefigue or Archipel Citoyen. "We will propose the complete redevelopment of the axis dedicated to soft modes and pedestrians. Who would imagine today going back on the pedestrianization of rue Alsace? Asks Romain Cujives, one of his spokespersons.

The outgoing mayor of #Toulouse said no to the pedestrianization of the Pont Neuf, considered "not realistic". Candidate for his re-election, @jlmoudenc rather proposes to "close to traffic" the #pont saint-Pierre, neighbor @ 2Pieds2Roues https://t.co/lZMMCzpLnC pic.twitter.com/EjT4bcMGoD

- Stephane Thepot (@canardumidi) January 27, 2020

A proposal that the outgoing municipal majority studied and rejected, arguing that this axis was essential in the management of flows. On the other hand, Jean-Luc Moudenc is ready to create a bicycle and pedestrian axis between La Grave and Place Saint-Pierre, by closing to traffic the bridge of the same name, which connects the two banks of the Garonne.

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  • Car
  • Bike
  • Transport
  • Toulouse
  • municipal
  • Mobility
  • congestion