Closed for two weeks due to road works, the Saint-Mihiel bridge in Nantes reopened this week by unveiling its final layout.
The structure overlooking the Erdre is now accessible to cars in only one direction (from Quai de Versailles to Quai Barbusse, west to east).
This same route is shared with the bikes.
The rest of the right-of-way is reserved for pedestrians and bicycles on separate lanes.
This configuration was already the one in force since March with provisional adjustments.
As a reminder, the bridge, originally open to motor traffic in both directions, had been totally closed to cars, on an experimental basis, between May 2020 and March 2021. Its partial reopening to motorists was motivated by the need to "fluidify traffic ”in the area, explained the town hall of Nantes.
Lively exchanges
A choice which is however strongly criticized by the defenders of soft movements, favorable to a definitive pedestrianization of the bridge.
Conversely, other users demanded the reestablishment of the second motor vehicle route.
Discussions on this subject have been particularly virulent over the past year.
Several Nantes streets have been pedestrianized, totally or partially, after experiments carried out during the first confinement (spring 2020).
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Nantes