Nouvelle route du Littoral

The Nouvelle route du Littoral transl. "New Coastal Road" or NRL is a project to reroute National route 1 from the coast to over the ocean in Réunion, a French overseas department in the south-west Indian Ocean. Built on viaducts and causeway, the road will pass over the sea for around 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) and eventually link Saint-Denis to La Possession, replacing the current route du Littoral, which is too exposed to rockfalls from the cliff at the foot of which it is located and to heavy waves. This project has faced technical, ecological and financial challenges, and the awarding of some of the contracts is the subject of a legal inquiry.[1][2][3]

Nouvelle route du Littoral
NRL
Grande-Chaloupe mai 2015.JPG
The Grande Chaloupe viaduct under construction in May 2015.
Route information
Length12.5 km (7.8 mi)
ExistedPartial (southbound) : 28 August 2022–present
Major junctions
East endSaint-Denis
South-east endLa Possession
Location
CountryFrance
Overseas regionRéunion
DepartmentLa Réunion
Highway system

Project

The project has been the subject of many studies and many designs, ranging from an entirely viaduct solution over the sea to a causeway doubling the existing road with various intermediate solutions. A tunnel under La Montagne was also studied.

The cost of the project was €1.6 billion (in December 2011), which equates to €130 million per kilometre.[4] This high cost has earnt the NRL the nickname of "the most expensive road in the world"[5]

The project was the subject of an assessment by the Autorité environnementale in October 2011, endorsed by the Minister for the Environment and Sustainable Development,[6] and was also assessed by the Conseil national de la protection de la nature (CNPN).[7]

Construction

In 2019, the supply of rocks for the causeway caused the work to be interrupted. The road requires 3 million tonnes of large boulders, the supply of which requires the opening of quarries at Saint-Leu and Bois-Blanc. Following legal challenges by environmental groups, citing the impact of the quarries, and the impact on the sea cliffs of the proposed causeway portion, the administrative court suspended the opening authorisations in April 2019, asking for a reflection on the departmental plan of the mines.[8][9][10]

On 3 April 2020, the Council of State confirmed the suspension of construction.[8] On 20 June, Didier Robert, then president of the Regional Council of Réunion, announced that the project would only be partially completed[9] pending reconsideration of the plans for the project. An agreement between the region and the contractors was reached on 31 July 2020, the terms of which remain to be published.[10]

On 30 March 2021 the viaduct portion between Grande Chaloupe and Saint-Denis was completed, with opening expected for the end of 2021.[11]

In 2021, the incorrect installation of several hundred tetrapods caused additional delays[12]

In mid-February 2022, the new president of the regional council Huguette Bello, announced that the La Possession to Grande Chaloupe section, originally planned as a causeway, was to be built as a viaduct similar to that of the Saint-Denis to Grande Chaloupe section.[13] This is expected to add €500 and €700 million to the cost of the road. Opening is planned seven years after the administrative procedures and preliminary studies, for an estimated opening date around 2029 or 2030.[13] The revised plan consists of a succession of three viaducts, with causeway only being used for short distances to connect between viaducts.[13] One of the arguments raised for the use of viaducts, rather than causeway was based on the effects of the passage of the Cyclone Batsirai at the beginning of February 2022. The cyclone caused waves which partially submerged the existing causeway, requiring it to be closed and emergemcy repairs were needed prior to reopening.[14] However, the viaduct portion was not impacted by the passage of the cyclone.[13]

On 28 August 2022, the new road was partially opened, in one direction only, on the 8.7 kilometres (5.4 mi) between St Denis and La Grande Chaloupe.[15]

  • The construction site of the Grande Chaloupe viaduct in November 2016.
    The construction site of the Grande Chaloupe viaduct in November 2016.
  • An incomplete causeway portion near Cape Bernard in November 2016.
    An incomplete causeway portion near Cape Bernard in November 2016.

References
  1. Adrien Rouchaléou (13 February 2015). "La Réunion. Une route dans un océan de scandales". L'Humanité (in French). Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  2. Philippe Desfilhes (3 June 2015). "Le projet fou de Vinci et Bouygues qui va ruiner l'île de La Réunion". Reporterre (in French). Archived from the original on 1 February 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  3. Clémence Alméras. "Nouvelle Route du Littoral à La Réunion : La route la plus chère de France". La Revue parlementaire (in French). Archived from the original on 21 July 2015. Retrieved 26 September 2022..
  4. Julien Sartre (24 September 2015). "À La Réunion, de lourds soupçons pèsent sur la route à 1,6 milliard". Mediapart (in French). Archived from the original on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  5. Philippe Ecalle (16 January 2022), "À La Réunion, "la route la plus chère au monde" au paradis des voitures", dimanche Ouest-France (in French), no. 1250, pp. 8–9, ISSN 0999-2138, archived from the original on 16 January 2022, retrieved 16 January 2022
  6. "Avis d'autorité environnementale sur le projet de nouvelle route du littoral" (PDF). Ministère de l'Écologie. October 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2022..
  7. Laurent Roy (10 September 2013). "Avis sur le projet de route du littoral de la Réunion" (PDF). Ministère de l'Écologie (in French). Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  8. AFP (14 April 2020). "Route du littoral à La Réunion: Le conseil d'État confirme la suspension du chantier" [Coastal road in Reunion: The Council of State confirms the suspension of the construction site]. Le Figaro (in French). Archived from the original on 7 September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  9. Philippe Desfilhes. "La Réunion renonce à finir l'absurde « nouvelle route du littoral »" [Reunion renounces to finish the absurd "new coastal road"]. Reporterre (in French). Archived from the original on 2 September 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  10. Jérôme Talpin (1 August 2020). "À La Réunion, un accord trouvé pour terminer le chantier de la route du littoral" [In Reunion, an agreement reached to complete the construction of the coastal road]. Le Monde (in French). Archived from the original on 26 September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  11. LH (26 March 2021). "NRL : le viaduc, qui "n'aboutit nulle part" selon EELV, sera livré le 30 mars" [NRL: the viaduct, which "ends nowhere" according to EELV, will be delivered on March 30]. Réunion 1ère. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  12. Adjaya Hoarau; Jean-Marc Collienne (30 September 2021). "Nouvelle Route du Littoral : 775 accropodes mal installés, du retard dans les travaux et une facture qui s'alourdit" [Nouvelle route du Littoral: 775 badly installed accropods, work delayed and an increasing bill]. Réunion 1ère (in French). Archived from the original on 16 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022..
  13. "A La Réunion, un second viaduc pour terminer la nouvelle route du littoral" [In Reunion, a second viaduct to complete the new coastal road]. Le Monde. 14 February 2022. Archived from the original on 15 February 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  14. "Le point sur la situation quatre jours après le passage du cyclone Batsirai" [Update on the situation four days after the passage of cyclone Batsirai]. France Info. 7 February 2022. Archived from the original on 15 February 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  15. "A La Réunion, ouverture (très) partielle de la Nouvelle route du littoral" [In Reunion, (very) partial opening of the New Coastal Road]. Le Monde. 28 August 2022. Archived from the original on 26 September 2022. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
    External video
    video icon Nouvelle route du Littoral – Animation
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