A campaign plan to reopen the riverside roads meets the picnickers, joggers and bottle-openers who have settled the territory
Seine Quays Proposal Meets Entrenched Resistance From People on Blankets
PARIS – The lower quays of the Seine were once an expressway. Then the cars were removed, and the Parisians came down with rose and a baguette and never left. During the campaign to choose a new mayor, one candidate suggested a rethink. As the city guide Le Bonbon reported under the headline that cars could soon be back on the Parisian quays, a programme unveiled in January proposed reopening the riverbank roads, a plan the magazine greeted without enthusiasm. On the cobbles the reaction was firmer.
“I arrived in the summer of 2017 with a folding chair,” said Thibault Mercadier, a sound technician, seated near the Pont Marie. “I have been here most evenings since. I have a spot. Everyone knows it is my spot. I met my wife here. We were married up there, on the bridge, and came back down for the reception. And now someone would like to drive a Peugeot through my living room. No. Respectfully, no.”
Current Uses of the Roadway
The Ile Saint-Louis Assembly of Riverside Occupants has inventoried what stands where traffic once ran:
- Picnic blankets, at a density of one per 2.4 metres
- A man with a guitar who knows three songs
- Joggers, overtaking each other with apology
- Children on balance bikes, steering by faith
- One accordionist, tolerated
- Several thousand corks
“It is the largest terrace in Europe and nobody has to buy anything,” said Assembly spokeswoman Mireille Castagnet. “That is why it will be defended. Parisians will give up a principle. They will not give up a free table.”
The Case for the Car
Supporters of reopening say traffic displaced from the quays clogs the streets above, and drivers have never forgiven the closure. A feature on the transformation of the city recalled a time when cafe customers were served exhaust fumes with their coffee and croissant, and noted that plenty of residents feel life has got harder for anyone behind a wheel. Castagnet has sympathy. “They are stuck up there,” she said, glancing at the road above. “We wave. They do not wave back.”
A survey of 750 Parisians found that 69 percent want the quays kept car-free, 21 percent want the road back and 10 percent want both, “with the cars going slowly and carrying wine.” Among the 21 percent, half admitted to having picnicked there.
Contingency Plans
The Assembly has prepared. In the event of reopening, members intend to remain seated. “A blanket is not an obstacle,” Mercadier said. “It is a residence.”
After the Vote
The election has come and gone, and the quays remain as they were. Mercadier did not follow the count closely. He was told the result by a neighbour on the next blanket. He nodded and opened a bottle.
The Thames Has a Road Where Its Beach Should Be
Londoners, whose own river is lined with dual carriageway, regard the Paris quays with longing. The London Prat’s London satirical news on the Embankment counted “four lanes, one bench and a statue of someone cross.” Its English satirical news about riverside living advised Paris to hold the line and the corkscrew.
The sun went down behind Notre-Dame at 9:41. Someone applauded, as someone always does. The guitar began its second song. Bohiney Magazine was offered a glass and a corner of the blanket, and accepted both.
SOURCE: https://bohiney.com/
