The budget session of the Loire-Atlantique departmental council, which took place on Monday and Tuesday, was marked by the expected adoption of a ten-year plan (2022-2032) for the development of roads and cycle routes. And this program will not lead to any concreting. On the contrary, the PS-EELV majority has, above all, decided to put the brakes on road development in order to respect its objective of ” zero net land take by 2050”. Sorting was done among the projects to be carried out and priority was given to “land-saving developments” and those “whose implementation has begun”: doubling of the Port-Saint-Père bypass, Machecoul bypass, deviation from Nort-sur-Erdre, link A83-Aigrefeuille…
Alternatives to the individual car will receive more support, such as the creation of a lane reserved for carpooling and buses between the Viais interchange and the southern entrance to Nantes (RD178), or that of the road to Pornic (RD723 ) in its crossing of Bouguenais. In the same spirit, new carpooling areas and “proximity stop points” will be designed.
A new bridge in Ancenis?
Travel by bicycle will also benefit from reinforced support, the objective being to help intermunicipalities to connect “all the municipalities of the department by cycle links”. However, there is work to do since no less than 3,900 kilometers of cycle routes to be created have been identified by 2032, including 1,400 kilometers at the expense of the departmental council alone.
Finally, the department does not forget that it owns, and therefore manages, six major Loire bridges. Rehabilitation work will have to be carried out, particularly in Saint-Nazaire, Thouaré and Varades. In Ancenis, the construction of a new crossing particularly suitable for pedestrians and cyclists will be studied. The desire to launch a hydrogen-powered Loire ferry in 2026 has been confirmed.