Since February 16, the locals in Nice have been able to use the last 2 kilometers of asphalt, in the east-west direction, on the expressway, as well as the second lane in the west-east direction. This new section has been well received.
However, before opening this new section, some rearrangements had to be made. The first of these, and not the least, was the removal of the Magnan slide. This access ramp was thus closed for 3 weeks, with vehicle traffic diverted to the Promenade des Anglais or towards Avenue de Californie, with the expected traffic issues at peak hours. And it was during the night of January 29 to 30 that the dismantling of the 3 spans on the eastern side was performed on the north roadway of the Mathis route. This operation required the deployment of a 200-ton crane on Boulevard de la Madeleine and a 100-ton crane on the north roadway of the Mathis route.
Once this action was completed, the city services were finally able to open the 2 kilometers of road from Magnan to Saint Augustin. A real delight for all residents of the Nice hills who commute to work. But of course, this opening did not go without incidents. Mainly at the new exit, Avenue Grinda, on the side of Saint Augustin. The new flow of vehicles quickly saturated this axis. Faced with this influx, the city quickly reorganized the situation to allow vehicles to turn left under the SNCF bridge and thus decongest traffic towards access to the A8.
A time saving of 20 to 30 minutes!
But where the change was most noticeable was in the west-east direction. The addition of a second lane greatly facilitates traffic flow. Where motorists used to drive bumper to bumper up to (at least!) the height of Magnan, one can now see smooth, congestion-free traffic, saving 20 to 30 minutes during peak hours.
The expressway has had the same appearance for 30 years. The more nostalgic might find this evolution regrettable but the final word comes from Sébastien, a dynamic young executive of 26 years: “My mother always said the expressway was only rapid by name. Now I can contradict her because I, who use it every day, save an hour on my commute between morning and evening. I am eagerly awaiting the definitive opening”
However, for that, we will have to wait a little longer and wait until the end of April…
