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About ten traders from the Route d’Avignon are mobilizing against the development of the future T2 line of the trambus, the work of which will begin on June 9.
It is a small portion of the road to Avignon which is located between the rue de Provence and that of Père d’Alzon. Here we are no longer quite in the city center and not yet in the Chemin-bas d’Avignon. Yet thousands of vehicles pass through there every day. Many people stop there to access the district, the Saint-Baudile cemetery or even the shops.
This little piece of Nîmes is also on the route of the second section of the Trambus T2 line. The work will begin on June 9 and it should be completed at the end of the year 2022. Progressively the work will pass through the Nîmes-center station, the Chemin-Bas district of Avignon then that of Pont-de-Justice and for finish in Paloma from September-October 2022. It is the work site which is at the heart of the concerns of a dozen merchants of the Route d’Avignon.
“I will have to stop everything”
Because the arrangements planned for the passage of T2 are not to the taste of the latter. ” We have nothing against the T2 line, but where we do not agree is that they take away the parking spaces on both sides. They will leave places in front of the cemetery and that does not suit us because we have to cross the street to access the shops. With a washing machine or a fridge this is not possible ”, emphasizes Christiane Bitche, who has been managing the AMS store since 2006.
His shop specializes in troubleshooting household appliances and spare parts. “Troubleshooting is more than 50% of my turnover and if people cannot park in front of the store, I should stop everything”, apprehends Christiane.
Concerned, traders are mobilizing and they post signs on the facades of their stores on which they can read “ Line T2 “condemns your local shops “. These residents of Nîmes regret the loss of parking space, but they also fear problems for their future delivery if vehicles cannot park near the shops. “ I have been a baker here for eleven years and no one came to see me to explain to me what was going to happen », Explains Philippe Labaume, whose store is located near the rue de Provence.
“It’s the death of my business and two unemployed employees”
Benjamin Clapier’s bakery is closer to rue du Père d’Alzon, but the problem is the same. For him the next few months will be decisive: “ If the plans don’t change, it’s the death of my business and two unemployed employees. 90% of my customers come by car. It is very disturbing. “No parking no business”: this sentence is not pretty but it is a reality. ”
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It is for the sustainability of their jobs that traders are worried. So they created a petition. ” We have collected more than 500 signatures ”, assures the baker. In the lot there is that of Patrick Ravel who comes regularly from Courbessac to buy his bread: “ I am signing this petition because it is important to support local commerce. I will continue to come even if it is difficult to park, but it may not be the case for everyone. ” There is also an online petition and an page Facebook to support traders.
For its part, the agglomeration, which manages the trambus, defends the project. On May 28, the Mobilités department of Nîmes Métropole went to meet local residents and shopkeepers, accompanied by the presidents of the Grézan-Chemin-Bas d’Avignon and Mas de Mingue-Courbessac district committees, elected officials of the City. Nimes. They discussed the preservation of trees, respect for the environment, maintaining two traffic lanes and the possibilities of cycling.
Two delivery spaces among the eight parking spaces
Two delivery spaces among the eight planned parking spaces are being studied with the services of Nîmes Métropole, as well as low borders in front of shops. ” This is to facilitate deliveries and allow traders to receive their raw materials easily ”, specifies Marc Duchenne, director of the Mobility department.
“We are going to make sure that the eight parking spaces planned near the shops are adapted to their needs and more functional, even to arrive up to 10 places in front of the shops”, specifies François Courdil, deputy mayor of Nîmes, delegate for “City policy” and social centers of Nîmes, also president of the district council Grézan-Chemin-Bas d’Avignon. The possibility of providing short-term parking spaces in adjacent streets is also being considered.
Compensation for affected traders
The traders affected by the work will be able to make a request to the amicable compensation commission (CIA). In the meantime, the traders reject the project and they propose one which, from their point of view, “Arrange everyone”. Nîmes metropolis indicates that ” this plan is under study “. The traders hope to succeed: “At a certain point we feel suffocated but it is possible to satisfy everyone. We will have an answer in 15 days, but it is a long time when his life depends on it. ” They are now holding their breath so that T2 is not a trambus called disaster.
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