2024-03-15 13:03:55
Nearly 800 French bridges will benefit from security work among the approximately 10,000 structures requiring “immediate security measures”. This decision, taken by the Senate, is part of a desire to improve the condition of French bridges, some of which show worrying signs.
France has between 200,000 and 250,000 bridges, of which 100,000 are managed by local authorities. Like any structure, these bridges suffer the effects of time, and since the collapse of the Morandi motorway viaduct in Genoa in 2018, a Senate report had already warned of the alarming situation of certain French bridges, estimating that at least 25,000 d All of them were in “poor structural condition and posed safety problems”.
During a round table in the Senate, the situation of bridges belonging to local authorities was examined. Of the 100,000 municipal bridges, around 25,000 require work, of which 10,000 require immediate safety measures. Pascal Berteaud, general director of Cerema, stressed that among these 10,000, 4,000 presented a serious structural disorder, while 25,000 were in good general condition and 50,000 were between the two extremes.
There are many reasons for the deterioration of bridges, ranging from natural aging to climatic hazards, particularly in overseas regions. In addition, municipalities encounter financial difficulties for the maintenance and repair of their structures.
To remedy this lack of funding, senators called for a “Marshall Plan” and demanded 130 million euros per year for 10 years for local authorities. However, between 2021 and today, only 110 million euros have been allocated to communities, which is considered largely insufficient by Hervé Maurey, senator for Eure.
Despite these financial challenges, the government launched a first program in 2020, followed by a second last September, releasing a total of 110 million euros for diagnostics and work. These funds will make it possible to audit around 60,000 bridges and provide support via an “SOS Bridges” service to help local elected officials. However, these measures still seem insufficient, as evidenced by the low number of grant applications received since September 2023, which amounts to only around a hundred.
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