The major A13 motorway linking Paris and Normandy is set to remain closed longer than expected, potentially affecting certain events during the 2024 Olympic Games held close to the capital.
Part of the motorway was closed near Vaucresson (Hauts-de-Seine) after cracks were discovered on a viaduct in April. Some of the cracks were around 80cm deep.
Repairs began in mid-May, and authorities originally believed the road would be fully reopened by the end of June, however this is now thought to be too ambitious.
An unnamed source from the Direction Interdépartementale des routes d’Ile-de-France (DiRIF, the authority responsible for road maintenance around the capital) told Franceinfo that the opening date will need to be pushed back at least a month.
It means the motorway will remain partially closed on and after July 26, the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games.
Olympic Events may be affected
Olympic organisers are concerned by the news, as the motorway is a major link between the French capital and the Yvelines department, where a number of events are to be held.
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Competitions held in the department – that is most easily reached for drivers from the capital using the A13 – include:
Golf at the Guyancourt course
Equestrian sports at Versailles
Mountain biking at Elancourt
Cycling, BMX, and certain fencing events at Montigny-le-Bretonneux
A single lane near the viaduct was reopened to traffic last month, but the increased volume of Olympic-related travellers will cause intense bottlenecks, both on this section of the A13 and the smaller alternate roads to enter the Yvelines.
Certain sections of the road may still open before the Opening Ceremony, however, even if the motorway is not fully reopened before the start of the Games.
Why is the motorway closed?
A section of the A13 motorway, a major artery linking the capital to Normandy and the western Paris suburbs, was partially closed near Paris on April 19 after cracks were discovered on a viaduct in the Hauts-de-Seine department.
A series of tests on the bridge were conducted, and work to repair the road began in mid-May.
The damage is not just superficial but also affects the viaduct’s foundations, meaning works have already taken longer than expected.
More than 100,000 vehicles cross the viaduct in question each day, mostly commuters travelling from the Yvelines or Normandy into Paris.
An investigation by media outlet Franceinfo concluded that the damage may have been caused by the construction of an underground car park near the bridge, which was connected to the motorway’s foundations.
