VINCI Autoroutes succeeds in exceptional major operation

The project plans to widen the section between Benoît Malon and Pierre Ronde to 2x3 lanes. An important project for the area and its residents, as part of the reconfiguration of the eastern access to the metropolitan area. As part of the widening of the A57 east of Toulon, a major operation took place at the Toulon Est (No. 2) interchange, in the Toulon - Nice direction (from Saturday, June 15 at 8 p.m. to Monday, June 17 at 6 a.m.). Traffic conditions were therefore modified during this period. An update on the work with Michel Castet, Director of Operations.

DRY WEATHER

"Specifically, at La Palasse, the A57 highway spans avenue Joseph Gasquet via a bridge. This bridge, dating back to the 1960s, has required significant renovation work for several months now. The project consisted of waterproofing the bridge, which could not be done at the same time as the demolition of the Tombadou structure last March, due to very poor weather conditions. Indeed, this operation can only be carried out in dry weather, due to the nature of the products used and their setting and drying times. Furthermore, it must be done with absolutely no traffic," explains Michel Castet. He adds: "That is why the A57 highway was closed to traffic starting from Toulon Est (No. 2), heading towards Nice, with a mandatory exit at this interchange. The teams took advantage of this closure of the A57 to carry out complex pavement reinforcement between the Saint-Jean-du-Var (No. 1) interchange and the Toulon Est (No. 2) interchange. The objective was to group major projects as much as possible to limit highway closures during weekends."

EXCEPTIONAL PROJECT

A "major" operation which, in the end, remains within the usual criteria for work carried out by VINCI Autoroutes, as the operations manager explains: "It is quite common to close the highway for a night to carry out work. It is, however, more exceptional to do it as we did during this operation. Everything had been settled, two to three months beforehand, with the prefectural authorities and local governments. It is complicated to set up such an operation because we have to take into account cultural events organized in the metropolitan area, public gatherings, the weather, and road traffic. The last time we closed the A57, it was pouring rain. Work that had been scheduled at that time could not be carried out. We had to think of a new slot to close the highway, which we did on the weekend of June 12 to 15." Thus, the concessionaire was able to successfully complete the planned work, including waterproofing the La Palasse bridge (in the Toulon – Nice direction). "In normal times, this operation represents about ten days of work, and we managed to complete the project in 36 hours! This is why this major operation was so exceptional! To succeed, we doubled the machinery on-site and mobilized a team of 80 people on the project," Michel Castet concludes with satisfaction.