New Montpellier-Perpignan Line: date, recruitment, field visit… Everything you need to know about the first citizens’ workshop on the Poussan viaduct

L'association ALT a créé un montage pour figurer la potentielle implantation du viaduc ferroviaire à Poussan. – ALT

Un échantillon de citoyens participera au premier des trois ateliers destinés à fournir un avis argumenté sur la future réalisation du projet de viaduc à Poussan.

Behind the scenes, the New Montpellier-Perpignan Line (LNMP) is not deviating from its track. Despite strong opposition to the project and doubts about its coherence, including from elected officials of Sète Agglopôle Méditerranée, the first citizen workshop promised by SNCF Réseau will indeed be held. Open by selection only, it will take place all day (10 a.m.-5 p.m.) on Saturday, January 11, in Poussan, in the Odéon room.

Reflecting on the architectural characteristics and landscape integration of the future viaduct in Poussan

This workshop, the first in a series of three spread out until May 2025, is dedicated to the study and construction of a viaduct in Poussan, one of the main areas of tension regarding this future high-speed line. It will involve considering the architectural characteristics and landscape integration, in order to enrich the specifications. The public meeting of November 7, already in Poussan, had made it possible to measure the concern, if not the absolute disagreement, of some of the inhabitants of the territory on the subject. The exchanges had sometimes been inaudible and the workshop at the end of the meeting had brought together only a handful of participants.

The route of phase 1, crossing the Thau basin from the north.

A little over two months later, the first citizens' workshop will indeed be held. It remains to be seen how many of these famous citizens who have been wanted since mid-November will be. Initially, SNCF Réseau, the project owner, was aiming for “the forty or so residents representative of the territory”. By mid-December, only eleven had confirmed their participation. A total far from the mark.

SNCF Réseau, the project owner, has adjusted the proportions of citizens

This therefore motivated the project owner to revise his copy. He was looking for fifteen candidates at the famous meeting of November 7, he will settle for seven (only three people registered in mid-December). He also seemed to be running after the five profiles to recruit from the citizen institutions of the territory (the Development Committee/Codev of Sète Agglopôle has already declined, Bouzigues and Gigean do not have representatives of neighborhood committees, Sète and Balaruc-le-Vieux were dragging their feet, etc.). He therefore revised upwards the number of citizens selected by the professional recruitment firm Stephenson Etudes: from 20, the figure rose to 28 profiles. Knowing that only eight people were registered in mid-December…

“Coloring workshops” for opponents

While the creation of these workshops does not seem to be easy, the resulting challenge is not neutral for Poussan. The citizens chosen will be asked to formulate a reasoned opinion explaining the recommendations and suggestions of the inhabitants of the territory regarding the viaduct in Poussan. We are talking about a structure 1.4 km long and 30 m high, passing over the Clachs area. If the ALT association, opposed to the project, or even the Codev, speak of a “colouring workshop” , the document will be attached to the specifications of the future international architecture and engineering competition that will be launched. The winning architect will have to follow it “as far as possible”, specifies the official documentation of the New Line.