{"id":428433,"date":"2025-09-16T08:36:12","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T08:36:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/428433\/"},"modified":"2025-09-16T08:36:12","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T08:36:12","slug":"france-transport-strikes-set-to-paralyse-roads-on-thursday","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/428433\/","title":{"rendered":"France transport strikes set to paralyse roads on Thursday"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"603\" data-end=\"779\">The protests could paralyse not only road traffic but also rail and air services. For hauliers, this brings a real risk of delays, stoppages and additional operational costs.<\/p>\n<p>Opposition to \u2018brutal\u2019 reforms<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"819\" data-end=\"1068\">The three largest transport union confederations \u2013 CFDT-FGTE, CGT Transports and FO-UNCP \u2013 have called for a nationwide strike and demonstrations. They oppose the <a href=\"https:\/\/trans.info\/en\/truckers-wage-420559\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">budget proposal<\/a>, which they claim contains \u2018<strong>unprecedentedly brutal fiscal measures<\/strong>\u2019.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1070\" data-end=\"1410\">The most contentious plans include the abolition of certain public holidays, cuts to social benefits, and reform of the unemployment benefit system. The unions are also demanding compensation for drivers\u2019 tough working conditions and a general wage increase, arguing that current pay levels \u2018do not allow a decent living from one\u2019s work\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>Road blockades and chaos in cities<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1454\" data-end=\"1701\">According to French media,<strong> blockades could hit key motorways and ring roads<\/strong> in cities such as <strong>Paris, Lyon and Marseille<\/strong>. <a href=\"https:\/\/trans.info\/en\/france-protests-420223\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">During the last action on 10 September<\/a>, access to the Paris Boulevard P\u00e9riph\u00e9rique was paralysed, causing hours of gridlock.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1703\" data-end=\"1899\">An even greater mobilisation is planned for 18 September. The group Bloquons tout (\u2018Let\u2019s Block Everything\u2019) has already declared on social media that the upcoming protests will be \u2018enormous\u2019.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1901\" data-end=\"2077\"><a href=\"https:\/\/trans.info\/en\/france-ai-traffic-cameras-419947\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">For the transport sector,<\/a> this means not only <strong>long traffic jams and diversions<\/strong> but also the prospect of <strong>additional police checks and difficulties<\/strong> accessing logistics centres.<\/p>\n<p>Where to expect the worst disruptions?<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"2125\" data-end=\"2379\">\n<li data-start=\"2125\" data-end=\"2219\">\n<p data-start=\"2127\" data-end=\"2219\"><strong data-start=\"2127\" data-end=\"2136\">Paris<\/strong> \u2013 entrances to the Boulevard P\u00e9riph\u00e9rique, access to ports and logistics centres<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2125\" data-end=\"2219\">\n<p data-start=\"2127\" data-end=\"2219\"><strong data-start=\"2222\" data-end=\"2230\">Lyon<\/strong> \u2013 A6 and A7 motorways, transit nodes<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2125\" data-end=\"2219\">\n<p data-start=\"2127\" data-end=\"2219\"><strong data-start=\"2272\" data-end=\"2285\">Marseille<\/strong> \u2013 access to the port, city ring road<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2125\" data-end=\"2219\">\n<p data-start=\"2127\" data-end=\"2219\"><strong data-start=\"2327\" data-end=\"2353\">Main transit motorways<\/strong> \u2013 A1, A7, A10, A31, A45<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Disruption risks also affecting rail and airports<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2438\" data-end=\"2745\">The strikes are expected to impact not only road transport. SNCF and regional operators (TER, Transilien) have already announced <strong>train cancellations<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2438\" data-end=\"2745\">At <strong>airports<\/strong> in Paris (Charles de Gaulle, Orly) and other major cities, delays and flight cancellations are expected, which will also affect cargo handling.<\/p>\n<p>Recommendations for hauliers and drivers<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2795\" data-end=\"2981\">The French authorities plan to deploy thousands of police officers and gendarmes to maintain order and remove blockades. During the previous action, dozens of protesters were detained.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2983\" data-end=\"3061\">For hauliers, this means the need for early operational planning, including:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"3063\" data-end=\"3185\">\n<li data-start=\"3063\" data-end=\"3119\">\n<p data-start=\"3065\" data-end=\"3119\">monitoring announcements from the French authorities<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"3063\" data-end=\"3119\">\n<p data-start=\"3065\" data-end=\"3119\">choosing alternative routes<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"3063\" data-end=\"3119\">\n<p data-start=\"3065\" data-end=\"3119\">preparing for delivery delays<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"3187\" data-end=\"3350\">On 18 September, France may become particularly challenging terrain for road transport. Companies operating in the country should be ready for <a href=\"https:\/\/trans.info\/en\/mont-blanc-tunnel-3-418229\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">major disruptions<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The protests could paralyse not only road traffic but also rail and air services. For hauliers, this brings&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":428434,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5309],"tags":[2000,299,36],"class_list":{"0":"post-428433","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-france","8":"tag-eu","9":"tag-europe","10":"tag-france"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115213066734889285","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=428433"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/428433\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/428434"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=428433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=428433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=428433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}