Driving in the Bonnevoie district has become a headache that puts the residents’ nerves to the test. Between the work on the tram and the other sites, you have to be patient.
For about two years, tram works, but not only, have surrounded the Bonnevoie district. “Already in normal times, it is a district made up of narrow streets where it is not always easy to circulate”, notes Romain Engels, who lives in this district which he has cherished for exactly 31 years.
“Currently, it takes me between 15 and 25 minutes more to get in or out,” explains the dashing retiree. Constantly when he is expecting a visit, his phone rings to ask him how to get to his home, even his daughter who grew up and worked a few streets away can’t find her way around. “Yet she knows the neighborhood like the back of her hand.” A topic of conversation in the meeting places of Bonnevoie and a shared observation. “We laugh about it, we say that we can no longer leave the neighborhood.”
A feeling of confinement
«The citizens of the Bonnevoie district feel locked in, knowing that the Rangwee which was the access to the Gluck roundabout (Editor’s note: to access the A1/A3/A4/A6 motorway network, the Howald district and the Cloche d’or) is crossed out. All traffic goes down the Thionville road towards the Buchler bridge to branch off towards the Gluck roundabout. Ditto in the opposite direction, Bonnevoie is only accessible from the Gluck roundabout by the South penetrating (Editor’s note: Bousser tunnel)”, he explains, map in support.
«There are too many works at the same time, in particular rue du Pont-Rémy and a construction site will soon start rue Gellé. Why didn’t you wait for the end of the tram work? A lot of road traffic coming from the east crosses the Bonnevoie district to access the city center, mainly via Pierre-Krier street, ”he continues. “From the Thionville road towards the Buchler bridge before branching off towards the Gluck roundabout, cars stop regularly until the Howald! Sunday, I realized, when I was at the Glück roundabout that I had forgotten my wallet… it took me 55 minutes to return home (Editor’s note: rue Nicolas-Martha) and come back.”
The end of telework revealed the problem
To escape the worst, Romain Engels waits until 10 a.m. to start using his car and returns it to the garage at 3:30 p.m. . Many historic residents of the neighborhood are elderly and have difficulty adapting to the new constraints. While this situation has already been going on for many months, why is Romain Engels reacting only now? “Before, there was the covid period during which many people were working from home. When teleworking stopped, we really felt the effects on traffic.”
The resident of Bonnevoie insists: “This is not a criticism, the town is doing a lot of great things and I would not want to be in the place of those who work to manage traffic, there is so much work everywhere, it is a puzzle. In addition, I deeply love my neighborhood. We are close to the city and right next to the fields, it is a huge opportunity.
A trader on the brink of failure
“These works are a real problem for traders,” says Makni Mohsan, the manager of the Lux Halal butcher’s shop at number 11, Route de Thionville. A small island of traders totally surrounded by impressive works. To access it, you need courage, patiently waiting for the cars stuck in traffic jams in front of the entrance to leave free access and in the meantime, customers who want to access it block traffic themselves to arrive in a particularly dusty car park .
“Let us at least hope that this work will be beneficial to the district. I do not understand the management of this site, I sometimes have the impression that there is a lack of coordination between the different actors: Luxembourg city, Luxtram and the Ponts et Chaussée”, continues the merchant who feels abandoned. after contacting the three actors without getting a response. After a period of covid, the manager fears “to die like so many others” without help.
“Excellent customers have asked me to excuse them because they have not been coming for a year. It’s too complicated for them. Those who come tell me “come and check the condition of my car”, especially when it’s raining. We clean the shop day and night because there is so much dust, even though we still work with food. When large construction machines are present, there is not a cat, it scares customers. They could at least give us the schedules so that we can order less meat on those days…”
He assures that the restaurant and the grocery store next door are also suffering from the situation and he himself can no longer hide his distress and his fear: “There are ten of us. How are we going to feed our families if we close? It is a good butcher, which is known, it would be a shame. He hopes to see the work speed up.
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Small readjustments to be made
Romain Engels does not only come with problems, he also offers solutions, such as changing the timing of the traffic light at the end of the Thionville road. As he walks us through the neighborhood to show us the various blocking points, we wait, off rush hour, for three red lights in a row before being able to turn left. However, the green light to go straight remains lit once all the cars have passed. Small readjustments, that’s all he wants. Especially since, like a majority of the population, he is totally in favor of the creation of a tram line.
Another problem for the inhabitants of the residential part, which is usually rather very quiet, is that the many diversions bring motorists to these small streets as well as buses and block them. “I am aware that when you live in town, you have to accept this kind of inconvenience. We are not in the countryside, there is traffic, it is normal. But our quality of life has gone down considerably, and it should last until September.”
Closer to the shops, a new generation seems less bothered by traffic jams: “Every day, we walk around. I take the car once a week to go to the Cloche d’Or to do the shopping and to take my daughter to the dance, luckily outside of rush hour. So things are going pretty well!” exclaims Claire Pegurri, 38, who left Paris to join the Bonnevoie district with her family last August.
“The extension of the tram is a great project”
She is lucky to live very close to her workplace, the Beaulieu brewery. “The fact that transport is free and that there is the Bouillon car park considerably relieves traffic congestion in the city. After Bonnevoie it’s complicated at the moment with the work on the tram. We lose 10 minutes (Editor’s note: from rue des Légionnaires). It’s not catastrophic either, especially since once the work is finished it will still greatly improve the quality of life here. The tram extension is a great project. Personally, I am for pedestrian-bicycle-tramway cities. So, I live it well because I know it’s for a good cause.
This is also somewhat the opinion of Maya, who has lived in the neighborhood for 11 years, very close to the shops. “Now I’m about to go to my dance class in Esch-sur-Alzette, and I need about 10 minutes more. But I don’t really feel the traffic, because like many people who live in Bonnevoie, we often walk, especially families, except those whose children go to European or international school. I have a girlfriend in Howald and I have the feeling that they are more annoyed by the situation.
Two generations and two parts of the neighborhood who do not experience things in the same way. The arrival of the tram and the end of the major works will perhaps make everyone agree.
Ponts et Chaussées aware of the situation
Inconveniences even on a bike
The retired athlete, former fitness teacher, is used to getting around by bike “because it goes faster”, but there again he comes up against the work to go to the Cloche d’Or. He questioned the administration of the Ponts et Chaussées on this subject and on all the difficulties encountered, she told him that she was “aware that the current situation is anything but pleasant and that it is putting a strain on the nerves. […] By the way, the municipality of Luxembourg, within the framework of the building site of the Pont Buchler que [les Ponts et Chaussées] realize, reserved a lane in the tunnel for buses and therefore blocked it.
This unfortunate situation will continue until the summer. For the start of the 2022 school year, the N40 (new N3), between the Buchler bridge and the rue de Neufchâteau, will be operational and will provide a first load shedding. In addition, the works of the Buchler Bridge will be completed in the near future, which will also contribute to the improvement of traffic flow.
Regarding your question about cycle routes, we refer you to the website www.mobiliteit.lu, where you can choose your different routes.
Fifteen days earlier, Romain Engels also contacted the college of aldermen, which replied to him. On the vdl.lu site, a map allows you to see all the construction sites in progress and to find more information, in particular on the dates.
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