The passage of the Paris ring road at 50 km/h, which runs from October 1 to 10, 2024, marks a turning point for bikers. With this reduction in speed, inter-lane traffic, which allowed two-wheelers to slip between cars, will no longer be authorized on this lane. This experiment, extended until December 31, 2024, is in fact only permitted on roads limited to 70 km/h or more.
The Paris ring road, which begins its passage at 50 km/h this Tuesday October 1 until October 10, 2024, ends the inter-lane circulation for bikers on this axis. This practice, authorized only on roads limited to 70 km/h or more, will therefore no longer be possible. Bikers will now have to wait behind cars, even in traffic jams.
The peripheral is an essential route for Parisian and Ile-de-France motorists and bikers. So far, the two-wheeler could slip between vehicles, a significant advantage in frequent traffic jams. But with the gradual reduction of the maximum speed to 50 km/h on the entire boulevard, this practice ends. According to current law, inter-lining is only permitted when the maximum speed is at least 70 km/h. Thus, motorcyclists will now have to wait behind cars, even during rush hours.
This change is part of the will of the Paris town hall, under the impetus ofAnne Hidalgoto reduce the speed on the peripheral for reasons of safety and improvement of the quality of life of local residents. The project, announced in 2023, is also presented as a legacy of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The modification is accompanied by the installation of new signage, with nighttime closures partial to allow their implementation.
The gradual transition to 50 km/h on the Paris ring road begins this Tuesday, October 1 with a first section of 12 kilometers, going from Porte des Lilas to Porte d’Orléans, where the maximum authorized speed drops from 70 to 50 km/h. This change will gradually extend across the entire ring road until October 10, thus standardizing the speed limit.
The schedule of changes is as follows:
- October 1 : passage at 50 km/h from the inner ring road from Porte des Lilas to Porte d’Orléans,
- October 2 : inner ring road from Porte d’Orléans to Porte Dauphine,
- October 3 : outer ring road from Porte de Bagnolet to Porte Maillot,
- October 4 : inner ring road from Porte Dauphine to Porte des Lilas,
- October 9 : outer ring road from Porte Maillot to Porte de Châtillon,
- October 10 : outer ring road from Porte de Châtillon to Porte de Bagnolet.
In all, 160 road signs will be installed during six nights of partial closure, between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. This project, announced by Anne Hidalgo since 2019 and presented as a legacy of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, is still debated, in particular with the reservations expressed by the Minister of Transport François Durovray, who recalls that the mayor is not the sole decision-maker.
This major change is not unanimous. Many residents and motorists express their concerns about traffic jams which are likely to worsen with this limitation. But for bikers, it is above all the loss of the inter-queue which will have a direct impact on their way of traveling in Paris.
Note that initially, there should not be many checks, because the City of Paris wants to give drivers a period of adaptation. The duration of this period was not specified. Subsequently, the automatic radars should be adjusted to take into account the new speed limit. As for mobile controls, they remain rare on the device.
