Transforming a road into an avenue
Transforming a trunk road into a green avenue for shared use between local residents and shopkeepers
Since 2023, Pézenas town council has launched a project to renovate one of the town's entrances, formerly a national road with no sidewalks, into a green avenue for shared use by local residents and shopkeepers, including antique dealers, as well as residents and tourists.
The project involves reducing the size of the area dedicated to motor vehicles, creating a protected cycling zone and installing sidewalks where none existed before as well as planting 239 trees into a biological corridor.
The project involves reducing the size of the area dedicated to motor vehicles, creating a protected cycling zone and installing sidewalks where none existed before as well as planting 239 trees into a biological corridor.
France
Avenue de Verdun, 34120 Pézenas
Prototype level
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
ERDF : European Regional Development Fund
An application was submitted in order to apply for a ERDF grant in line with the creation of a cycling zone in 2024. As of today, our application has been pre-instructed by the Occitanie Region services.
No
34199: Pézenas (FR)
The town of Pézenas is planning to redevelop its main thoroughfare, known as the Traversée Urbaine, next to which is the historic town, which has been designated a Site Patrimonial Remarquable. Pézenas is a Town of Art and History on the route of Europe's historic theatres, and is also the town of Molière and Boby Lapointe.
The redevelopment of a section of the urban crossing, the Avenue de Verdun, will enable 1km of the 6km former N9 trunk road that crosses the town of Pézenas from north to south to be renovated, i.e. almost 20,000m2 over a projected 20-month period.
The project involves transforming a road into an urban boulevard: the width of the road will be reduced to allow for the creation of soft mobility routes. A green lane and a continuous, safe, lit and shaded pavement will be created. Soft modes will be given priority over cars to change the status of the road.
The renovation is envisaged from a global and comprehensive angle: removal of the waterproofing from the roads, making the shops accessible, renewing the dry and wet networks, burying these networks, planting, creating pavements and cycle paths, making the road safer for residents and pedestrians, making the avenue more peaceful by reducing speeds and ensuring that different uses coexist.
Several target groups are concerned by this renovation:
- local residents, who are themselves subdivided into different categories: local shops, health professionals (clinic, pharmacy, veterinary clinic, opticians), residents (in detached houses or collective housing), supermarkets, petrol stations and antique dealers (70 brands are present on the avenue).
- residents of the town, who come to buy supplies in these shops and benefit from the range of services on offer
- residents of the surrounding villages, who come to shop and take advantage of the public services in Pézenas, the northern centre of the Hérault Méditerranée conurbation
- Tourists using this route from the A9 (Agde) and the A75.
The redevelopment of a section of the urban crossing, the Avenue de Verdun, will enable 1km of the 6km former N9 trunk road that crosses the town of Pézenas from north to south to be renovated, i.e. almost 20,000m2 over a projected 20-month period.
The project involves transforming a road into an urban boulevard: the width of the road will be reduced to allow for the creation of soft mobility routes. A green lane and a continuous, safe, lit and shaded pavement will be created. Soft modes will be given priority over cars to change the status of the road.
The renovation is envisaged from a global and comprehensive angle: removal of the waterproofing from the roads, making the shops accessible, renewing the dry and wet networks, burying these networks, planting, creating pavements and cycle paths, making the road safer for residents and pedestrians, making the avenue more peaceful by reducing speeds and ensuring that different uses coexist.
Several target groups are concerned by this renovation:
- local residents, who are themselves subdivided into different categories: local shops, health professionals (clinic, pharmacy, veterinary clinic, opticians), residents (in detached houses or collective housing), supermarkets, petrol stations and antique dealers (70 brands are present on the avenue).
- residents of the town, who come to buy supplies in these shops and benefit from the range of services on offer
- residents of the surrounding villages, who come to shop and take advantage of the public services in Pézenas, the northern centre of the Hérault Méditerranée conurbation
- Tourists using this route from the A9 (Agde) and the A75.
common space and sense
soft mobilities
accessibility
pacify
de-impermeabilization
The sustainability of the project lies in the following 6 items:
- Encourage soft mobility rather than the use of cars for day-to-day shopping by linking this thoroughfare to the town centre with the creation of safe, tree-lined pavements and a cycle path joining the existing network and by reducing the space dedicated to cars (one lane from 10m to 6m) in order to limit greenhouse gas emissions.
- Improving air quality by planting 280 trees and shrubs of resilient species adapted to the Mediterranean climate in rooted watering systems.
- De-impermeabilize part of the current road structure (2,000m2 of the 20,000m2 project area) to conserve water resources and create a continuity of the subsoil (brown grid).
Two ditches on either side of the carriageway will collect rainwater from the pavements and the green lane to help water the plants. In all, more than 2,000m² of planted areas will be created, providing shade for local residents as well as for shoppers, pedestrians and cyclists using this thoroughfare, while at the same time making the avenue more permeable.
- Removing from the basement all asbestos cement structures, most of which are embedded in the roots of existing trees.
- Carrying out a virtuous worksite by reusing planing materials on site
- Using LED lighting and switching off at night.
- Encourage soft mobility rather than the use of cars for day-to-day shopping by linking this thoroughfare to the town centre with the creation of safe, tree-lined pavements and a cycle path joining the existing network and by reducing the space dedicated to cars (one lane from 10m to 6m) in order to limit greenhouse gas emissions.
- Improving air quality by planting 280 trees and shrubs of resilient species adapted to the Mediterranean climate in rooted watering systems.
- De-impermeabilize part of the current road structure (2,000m2 of the 20,000m2 project area) to conserve water resources and create a continuity of the subsoil (brown grid).
Two ditches on either side of the carriageway will collect rainwater from the pavements and the green lane to help water the plants. In all, more than 2,000m² of planted areas will be created, providing shade for local residents as well as for shoppers, pedestrians and cyclists using this thoroughfare, while at the same time making the avenue more permeable.
- Removing from the basement all asbestos cement structures, most of which are embedded in the roots of existing trees.
- Carrying out a virtuous worksite by reusing planing materials on site
- Using LED lighting and switching off at night.
The experience of users of this avenue will be improved in four ways:
- Priority will be given to safe, planted areas dedicated to pedestrians and cyclists, putting people back at the heart of the public space, both factually and symbolically.
- The installation of street furniture capable of creating meeting places should also help to give this avenue a neighbourhood feel.
- Refurbishing the avenue will also involve working on realigning the various spaces (where the boundaries between uses and property boundaries are not respected), which will ultimately result in real improvements in terms of aesthetics.
- The project has also been designed to guarantee the safety of users, with a route at a constant height along the entire length of the avenue: with priority given to pedestrians and cyclists, it is the car that is affected by the differences in height, with the aim of limiting speed.
- From now on, the avenue will be a key link for users travelling to and from the city centre.
In order to measure and monitor the take-up of the area by users of soft modes of transport, a specialist consultancy firm will carry out a quantification exercise, with counts of both cycle and pedestrian traffic (every two months for the first year to ensure that progress is being made).
- Priority will be given to safe, planted areas dedicated to pedestrians and cyclists, putting people back at the heart of the public space, both factually and symbolically.
- The installation of street furniture capable of creating meeting places should also help to give this avenue a neighbourhood feel.
- Refurbishing the avenue will also involve working on realigning the various spaces (where the boundaries between uses and property boundaries are not respected), which will ultimately result in real improvements in terms of aesthetics.
- The project has also been designed to guarantee the safety of users, with a route at a constant height along the entire length of the avenue: with priority given to pedestrians and cyclists, it is the car that is affected by the differences in height, with the aim of limiting speed.
- From now on, the avenue will be a key link for users travelling to and from the city centre.
In order to measure and monitor the take-up of the area by users of soft modes of transport, a specialist consultancy firm will carry out a quantification exercise, with counts of both cycle and pedestrian traffic (every two months for the first year to ensure that progress is being made).
The redevelopment of the avenue should help to create a social link within the district by creating open and peaceful traffic routes to encourage the population to use soft mobility and enable local residents to get around safely. Nearly 300 homes were delivered before work began on this avenue, ⅓ of which were marketed to senior citizens and a further one-third were allocated to a home for young disabled workers due to the presence of an adapted company less than a kilometre away.
The project also plans to improve access to the shops, services and housing on this avenue by creating pavements and terraces for restaurants and antique dealers, as well as creating disabled parking spaces.
The link with the town centre will also be reaffirmed, in particular through Avenue François Curée and Rue Victor Hugo, which, close to Avenue de Verdun, have been the focus of recent renovation programmes.
The project also plans to improve access to the shops, services and housing on this avenue by creating pavements and terraces for restaurants and antique dealers, as well as creating disabled parking spaces.
The link with the town centre will also be reaffirmed, in particular through Avenue François Curée and Rue Victor Hugo, which, close to Avenue de Verdun, have been the focus of recent renovation programmes.
When the project was being defined, local residents were first involved in defining the diagnosis and the issues at stake with the city council which organised meetings by category of users in order to define their needs beforehand (in terms of visibility, accessibility and safe access, in particular), by collecting their testimonies of use.
In concrete terms, for each category of user of the avenue (shopkeepers, supermarkets, antique dealers, service stations, restaurant owners, local residents, etc.), inventories of specific uses and a list of malfunctions were drawn up through meetings organised by the town's technical services and the project manager in order to enrich the project.
Then, in a second phase, local residents were involved in defining the preliminary project, which consisted of translating the needs of each individual, as identified in the previous phase, into the overall plan, with precise details of uses.
At the end of this phase, the residents (the population of Pézenas) were invited to share in the preliminary design by means of a public meeting organised on site in September 2022, during which the general geometry of the project and its uses were validated.
The third phase was then launched from October 2022 to June 2023, during which further meetings were held with local residents and then with the general public to present the finalised project.
Finally, the fourth phase, from July 2023 to October 2023, consisted of a presentation of the works and the timetable for the various phases, with the works starting in November 2023 for a provisional duration of 20 months (24 months updated).
Since work began in October 2023, monthly meetings have been held with representatives of the avenue's retailers, in the presence of the Mayor, the city's technical services and the project manager.
A city official receives residents' complaints in real time via a dedicated e-mail address and deals with them on a daily basis.
In concrete terms, for each category of user of the avenue (shopkeepers, supermarkets, antique dealers, service stations, restaurant owners, local residents, etc.), inventories of specific uses and a list of malfunctions were drawn up through meetings organised by the town's technical services and the project manager in order to enrich the project.
Then, in a second phase, local residents were involved in defining the preliminary project, which consisted of translating the needs of each individual, as identified in the previous phase, into the overall plan, with precise details of uses.
At the end of this phase, the residents (the population of Pézenas) were invited to share in the preliminary design by means of a public meeting organised on site in September 2022, during which the general geometry of the project and its uses were validated.
The third phase was then launched from October 2022 to June 2023, during which further meetings were held with local residents and then with the general public to present the finalised project.
Finally, the fourth phase, from July 2023 to October 2023, consisted of a presentation of the works and the timetable for the various phases, with the works starting in November 2023 for a provisional duration of 20 months (24 months updated).
Since work began in October 2023, monthly meetings have been held with representatives of the avenue's retailers, in the presence of the Mayor, the city's technical services and the project manager.
A city official receives residents' complaints in real time via a dedicated e-mail address and deals with them on a daily basis.
At a local level, this initiative arose from the town of Pézenas' desire to upgrade this former trunk road in the mid-2010s. Given the complexity of the issues at stake, the town has enlisted the help of a number of partners to bring this major redevelopment to a successful conclusion, with a total budget for the project of €10 million including tax.
In partnership with the Département de l'Hérault, the town has embarked on a process of upgrading the urban sequences of this long crossing, which plays an important role in its urban functioning. The town of Pézenas has been assisted by the Conseil d'Architecture, d'Urbanisme et de l'Environnement de l'Hérault (CAUE) in carrying out an analysis of the various issues and identifying the professionals to be called on to complete the project. The Hérault Méditerranée agglomeration, of which the town of Pézenas is a part, has agreed to carry out the entire repair of the wet networks on this avenue. The Hérault department, the Occitanie region and the French government (Green Fund) are also financial partners of the town of Pézenas in the construction of this public facility. Many other partners were involved in the definition of this project, such as the Sictom (responsible for household waste), Hérault Transport, Hérault Energies (responsible for the dry networks) and Kéolis (responsible for public transport) (please refer to appendix F for a detailed map of the parties involved).
In partnership with the Département de l'Hérault, the town has embarked on a process of upgrading the urban sequences of this long crossing, which plays an important role in its urban functioning. The town of Pézenas has been assisted by the Conseil d'Architecture, d'Urbanisme et de l'Environnement de l'Hérault (CAUE) in carrying out an analysis of the various issues and identifying the professionals to be called on to complete the project. The Hérault Méditerranée agglomeration, of which the town of Pézenas is a part, has agreed to carry out the entire repair of the wet networks on this avenue. The Hérault department, the Occitanie region and the French government (Green Fund) are also financial partners of the town of Pézenas in the construction of this public facility. Many other partners were involved in the definition of this project, such as the Sictom (responsible for household waste), Hérault Transport, Hérault Energies (responsible for the dry networks) and Kéolis (responsible for public transport) (please refer to appendix F for a detailed map of the parties involved).
The diagnosis carried out by the CAUE of the Hérault department led to the creation of a working group with a number of local players: UDAP, the regional representative of the Ministry of Culture and Heritage (in particular heritage and the promotion of architectural, urban and landscape quality), DREAL, the regional representative of the Ministry of Ecological Transition (environmental quality of the project), the Region, in particular through the creation of a multimodal interchange planned for the commune of Pézenas (mobility and intermodality of the project), and the Communauté d'agglomération Hérault Méditerranée (responsible for economic attractiveness, mobility, water and drainage).
Exchanges between the town, the CAUE, the UDAP, the Département de l'Hérault, the DREAL, the Communauté d'agglomération Hérault Méditerranée and the Région Occitanie have enabled a number of disciplines to be cross-referenced in order to identify the various challenges facing this avenue, from the definition of risks (flood-prone area) to the typology of economic activities present on this avenue (hospitality and catering, shops and services, antique and second-hand goods dealers, the presence of the Cave Coopérative and major retail chains and their car parks), mobility (pedestrian traffic in particular, but also in connection with the creation of a multimodal interchange), parking and traffic (exceptional convoys), the state of the plant cover (discontinuous and damaged), technical constraints (road networks, access, etc.) and other town projects (St Christol district, renaturation of the banks of the Peyne)
Exchanges between the town, the CAUE, the UDAP, the Département de l'Hérault, the DREAL, the Communauté d'agglomération Hérault Méditerranée and the Région Occitanie have enabled a number of disciplines to be cross-referenced in order to identify the various challenges facing this avenue, from the definition of risks (flood-prone area) to the typology of economic activities present on this avenue (hospitality and catering, shops and services, antique and second-hand goods dealers, the presence of the Cave Coopérative and major retail chains and their car parks), mobility (pedestrian traffic in particular, but also in connection with the creation of a multimodal interchange), parking and traffic (exceptional convoys), the state of the plant cover (discontinuous and damaged), technical constraints (road networks, access, etc.) and other town projects (St Christol district, renaturation of the banks of the Peyne)
The innovative nature of the project lies not only in the exhaustive nature of the analysis carried out, as mentioned in the previous point, thanks to the invaluable support of the CAUE, but also in the participatory approach adopted in defining the project, with meetings organised with the various categories of local residents well in advance of the project phase, enabling them to be included in the analysis (collection of their user testimonies). In concrete terms, for each category of user of the avenue (shopkeepers, supermarkets, antique and second-hand goods dealers, service stations, restaurant owners, local residents, etc.), inventories of specific uses and a survey of malfunctions were carried out in order to enrich the project.
The project followed 4 stages: 1. the shared diagnosis (knowing and making known) from 2016 to 2020 2. the possibilities (measuring and testing) from 2020 to 2022 3. the chosen scenario (deciding and sharing) from 2022 to 2023 and 4. Implementing the project (carrying out and supporting) from 2023 to the present day (work to be completed in autumn 2025).
Thanks to the support of the Department's CAUE, and its expertise in urban planning, architecture and landscape integration, the town has been able to produce a common understanding, shared with all its partners and the residents of the avenue. This shared understanding then made it possible to define the development objectives and a pre-programme that formed the basis of a coherent set of specifications for the teams of professionals subsequently called upon.
Thanks to the support of the Department's CAUE, and its expertise in urban planning, architecture and landscape integration, the town has been able to produce a common understanding, shared with all its partners and the residents of the avenue. This shared understanding then made it possible to define the development objectives and a pre-programme that formed the basis of a coherent set of specifications for the teams of professionals subsequently called upon.
Last year, on 29 February 2024, the French government chose Pézenas to host the first ‘Petites Villes de Demain’ (Small Towns of Tomorrow) workshop, aimed at elected representatives and technicians from communes in the Hérault department who are taking part in this national scheme to assist and support communal and inter-communal projects supported locally by the DDTM.
The working day used the urban crossing of Pézenas as an example, to encourage elected representatives from smaller communes to draw inspiration from the working methodology deployed on the Avenue de Verdun by the town of Pézenas and its various partners (Département, CAUE, Agglomération Hérault Méditerranée, Préfecture), who were represented at the working day.
Undoubtedly, the participative approach that governed the construction of the project and the organisation of the worksite is an example that should be replicated on projects of this scale and with such an impact on everyday life. Similarly, the partnership approach with the various public players and funders has made it possible to take everyone's opinions and needs into account and to anticipate the organisation of the worksite and the future uses of the avenue.
The working day used the urban crossing of Pézenas as an example, to encourage elected representatives from smaller communes to draw inspiration from the working methodology deployed on the Avenue de Verdun by the town of Pézenas and its various partners (Département, CAUE, Agglomération Hérault Méditerranée, Préfecture), who were represented at the working day.
Undoubtedly, the participative approach that governed the construction of the project and the organisation of the worksite is an example that should be replicated on projects of this scale and with such an impact on everyday life. Similarly, the partnership approach with the various public players and funders has made it possible to take everyone's opinions and needs into account and to anticipate the organisation of the worksite and the future uses of the avenue.
Locally, the town of Pézenas is working to fight against greenhouse gas emissions by increasing the amount of space dedicated to soft mobility on an avenue almost a kilometre long, by reconstituting a resilient green network adapted to periods of intense drought, by desilting almost 10% of the project's right-of-way, and by working to reconstitute local biodiversity with wildlife-friendly LED lighting.
By enabling the development of soft mobility, the town is also contributing to the well-being of its residents, particularly those living nearby, by improving air quality and reducing noise pollution.
Through this project, the town also hopes to reduce the use of cars for short everyday journeys and encourage its residents to walk or cycle, which are beneficial to their health.
By creating a shared space in a key public area, the town is also contributing to the social cohesion of its residents.
By enabling the development of soft mobility, the town is also contributing to the well-being of its residents, particularly those living nearby, by improving air quality and reducing noise pollution.
Through this project, the town also hopes to reduce the use of cars for short everyday journeys and encourage its residents to walk or cycle, which are beneficial to their health.
By creating a shared space in a key public area, the town is also contributing to the social cohesion of its residents.
The Avenue de Verdun project is entering its final phase, with work starting in November 2023. The project is due to be handed over at the end of 2025.
Throughout 2025, monthly meetings will continue to be held between representatives of the city, the main contractor and the avenue's shopkeepers. There are also plans to involve the town's schools and local residents more closely in the planting that will take place next autumn, shortly before the avenue is inaugurated.
Throughout 2025, monthly meetings will continue to be held between representatives of the city, the main contractor and the avenue's shopkeepers. There are also plans to involve the town's schools and local residents more closely in the planting that will take place next autumn, shortly before the avenue is inaugurated.
