The announcement will not appeal to fans of the car, necessarily. Nantes metropolis let it be known this Wednesday that the pedestrian space in Nantes city center was going to be extended to around twenty new streets spread over four sectors. The first concerned, from 2024, is that of the Quai de Versailles. This will begin with the permanent closure to cars of the Saint-Mihiel bridge, from the end of June 2023.
The pedestrian zone in the Hôtel de Ville sector (rue A.Brossart, Saint-Léonard, etc.) will also be extended in 2024. In 2025, it will be the turn of the Joffre (rue Maréchal-Joffre, Geoffroy-Drouet, etc.) and Cathedral (rue of Verdun, Saint-Denis…). Terminals will be installed to prevent access.
Rue Henri IV and Rue Clemenceau calmed down
Reserved for buses, delivery people, local residents and taxis, but prohibited for cars without badges, the restricted traffic area (ZTL) will also be deployed on Henri IV streets and Clemenceau, between Duchesse-Anne and the Jardin des Plantes, by 2025. Traffic on these two axes had already decreased significantly.
The same restrictions have applied for ten years during the 50-Hostages, at rue du Calvaire and rue de l’Hôtel-de-Ville. They had the effect of reducing the number of vehicles by three, traffic in the ZTL being subject to controls.
The objective of these measures is to encourage Nantes residents to “give up the car” in favor of walking, cycling or public transport. A public consultation will be open from June 12 to July 21.