Rue Léon Blum, which was an important traffic route in Antigone, is now reserved for pedestrians and soft mobility. In accordance with the vision that Ricardo Bofill, the architect of the district who is celebrating his fortieth anniversary, had.
Two and a half years after being closed to traffic, the redeveloped rue Léon Blum was inaugurated this Thursday, December 19. A ribbon cutting all the more anticipated as it should have taken place three months ago. The cost of the project amounted to €1.60 million.
“At the heart of this district created forty years ago, we have restored the pedestrian continuity of 1.5 kmexplained Julie Frêche, vice-president of the Metropolis responsible for mobility. Between 10,000 pedestrians and 10,000 cars per day, a choice was made.”. This street is also used by the bicycle ring which will go around the city center.
“Forty years before the quarter-hour city (model of a city where all essential services are within a quarter of an hour on foot or by bike)Ricardo Bofill had imagined a qualitative public space, far from the bars of buildings without urban planning which characterized the urban planning of the 70s”underlined the elected official.
“The largest pedestrian city center in Europe”
“We wanted to be faithful to it by reopening rue Léon-Blum without cars, as it had been designed”added the mayor and president of the Metropolis, Michaël Delafosse. He was delighted that this perspective had become a link in the “largest pedestrian city center in Europe”.
Elected officials paid tribute to the Catalan architect who returned to Antigone in July 2021, a few months before his death. In 2018, this 25-hectare district received the “Remarkable Contemporary Architecture Label”.
“Continue to develop the pedestrian city”
On this former military wasteland linking the city center to Lez, buildings as emblematic as the Olympic swimming pool (1996) or the Émile-Zola media library (2000) have seen the light of day. Near rue Léon Blum, “Mediterranean plant beds were created and the soils were de-waterproofed”specifies the mayor.
“We will continue to develop the pedestrian city, where children, seniors and people with disabilities feel safe. Everyone must be able to find their place in the city”.
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