The agents of the Western Regional Roads Directorate prefer to remain cautious about the opening date. If all goes well, the construction work on the lane reserved for public transport on the hard shoulder should be completed by the end of November. Buses using this axis linking Nantes to Rennes should circulate on this four-kilometre portion “during December or early January”, said Diro this Friday. But not taxis, nor scooters and motorcycles, which will be prohibited from using the hard shoulder, even in the event of heavy traffic. Only emergency and Diro vehicles will be able to venture there. As for the buses, they will only be able to drive there in the event of traffic jams. Keolis and Breizhgo drivers will soon be trained in the use of this new lane.
Before cutting the ribbon, the Diro will have to coal to transform the exchanger of the door of Alma. A major project that will require four days of work 24 hours a day and will cause significant traffic problems from Monday to Friday next (see box). It is precisely to make bus traffic in the Star and the region more fluid that the new lane was created. “If we want to encourage the use of public transport, we must make them attractive, create a good alternative to the private car”, recalls Paul-Marie Claudon, secretary general of the prefecture of Ille-et-Vilaine. .
Speed limited to 70 km/h
Valued at five million euros, this project should enable the buses to save “five minutes on average” on their journey. But above all, gaining regularity, by avoiding traffic jams. Their speed will however be limited to 70 km/h, in order to anticipate the stopping of a broken down vehicle. Because the hard shoulder will keep its use as a refuge for motorists in difficulty. And to ensure that other vehicles do not venture there to scratch a few minutes, a video surveillance system has been set up by Diro.
Already tested in Marseille and Grenoble and inaugurated in Nantes this summer, this new system will undergo a six-month test in Rennes. In the long term, all the penetrating roads leading to Rennes will be equipped with the same system, in particular within the framework of the deployment of trambus.