Lyons. “There is going to be a death”: the clandestine depot at the Part-Dieu station irritates
By Nicholas Zaugra
Published on
Horns, brutal banging on the steering wheel, shouting insults: with each train arrival and at rush hour, the traffic around the Part-Dieu station (3rd arrondissement of Lyon) turns into a nightmare.
It’s due Villette side, where the bus station, the T4 and T3 tram stops and the Rhônexpress are located, that the situation is getting a little more tense every day. In the midst of a continuous stream of travellers, cars, pedestrians, bicycles, buses, hybrid bikes and scooters mingle in total anarchy.
The rue Maurice Flandin combines all dangerous behavior: cars in double line, parked on the cycle path or on pedestrian crossings. At certain times, cars are even stopped in the middle of the street, to warn traffic.
The minute depot closed since March 2021
The “official” quick-depot on this side of the SNCF station has been closed since March 2021. The parking space has given way to a pedestrian space on Place de Frankfurt and a future hotel which is still in the works. “The hotel is still planned, the building permit has been validated but it is dragging on for administrative reasons”, according to Fabien Bagnon, vice-president at the Métropole de Lyon in charge of roads and active mobility.
The elected official notes that “motorists do not understand the disappearance of the minute depot when they see this empty ground (…) on a push test at the maximum of its lifespan”, according to him.
” Get out of there ! Push your crate »
At rush hour, motorists, cyclists and pedestrians try to cohabit but in pain. ” Get out of there ! Push your box, ”says a VTC driver to a motorist parked in front of him straddling between a pedestrian crossing and the road.
An embarrassed cyclist on the cycle path is sorry: “There will be a death one day if it continues like this”. The rue Maurice Flandin cycle path is systematically occupied by cars, the Vélo’v station is sometimes inaccessible and bicycles have to mingle with the anarchic traffic.
There will be a death one day if it continues like this”
But some are unaware that there is a free underground drop-off for 15 minutes under the station accessible in both directions from rue de la Vilette. “We have no choice,” assures a father who is expecting his daughter from a TGV. Another parked with his hazard lights ensures that it is “just for 2 minutes”. A last one, aware of the existence of the underground minute deposit, regrets that “it’s only free for 15 minutes, the previous one was 30…”
New developments in 2023
On the side of the Métropole de Lyon, it is attentive to the situation. “It’s a subject that challenges us,” concedes Fabien Bagnon. “There is a high level of misuse in the sector and the conflicts of use are too great (…) this raises real questions of safety”.
“New developments” which will “eradicate illegal parking” are “certain” for 2023, according to the vice-president of Greater Lyon. “It is a high priority for the Metropolis, the City of Lyon and the 3rd arrondissement town hall”, according to him. If we do not yet know the planned developments, the goal is to stop the anarchic parking of cars on the cycle path, on the pedestrian crossings or at the entrances and exits of the bus station…
The Métropole also wants to “improve” the signage to better direct motorists to the underground fast-depot. “There will also be a better distribution with the future car park on the Vivier Merle side, but we cannot wait for 2025…”, recognizes Fabien Bagnon.
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