Road opening
At the heart of his fight for the department was road opening. Jacques Barrot was the great architect of the RN 88 between the Puy basin and Saint-Étienne. The winding national road gradually lost its bends and widened into two-lane sections with structures spanning the valleys. In 1994, he notably inaugurated the Lignon bridge viaduct or a few years later, in 2004, the La Guide-La Besse diversion in Yssingeaux. The axis has contributed to the economic development of the territory, particularly its connection with Rhône-Alpes.
The work carried out paved the way for the Puy-en-Velay bypass. We will also cite the efforts made on secondary axes, such as between Le Puy and Saugues or Le Puy and Craponne, without forgetting between Loire and Haute-Loire on the Col du Tracol side.
The development of the industry
Over the decades, Jacques Barrot, through his functions, enabled the establishment of companies like Michelin or MSD (Fareva) in Saint-Germain/Blavozy. He also contributed to the development of relay factories in the region. One of Jacques Barrot's great satisfactions for Haute-Loire comes down to one word that he said in 2004, when he was European Commissioner: employment. He says: “We have succeeded in replacing the jobs that agriculture could no longer create or maintain with others in the industrial sector. Today, Haute-Loire has a framework that should allow it to keep its young people and develop an industrial culture. » Training was also a priority for him. Symbol of this attention, the National School of Pastry, Ducasse School, in Yssingeaux, which shines throughout the world.
The Department Hotel
The rehabilitation of the buildings of the former Charité du Puy General Hospital into the Hôtel du Département was carried out from 1995 to 2001. It led to a real metamorphosis of the site. This idea is that of Jacques Barrot who, against the opinion of many – if not all – at the time, carried out this project which aimed, on the one hand, to safeguard an exceptional built heritage and, on the other hand, on the other hand to revitalize this sector of the upper town of Puy-en-Velay while creating a central hub dedicated to community services. This Hôtel du Département is one of the most important traces left by Jacques Barrot.
