French trucker protests: Where are protests being held today and tomorrow?

Truck drivers continue to protest across France today, with several major demonstrations called for in the south of the country on Wednesday (April 1). 

Today (March 31), trucks are limiting their speed around Bordeaux (Gironde), driving no faster than 50km/h on major roads, expected to lead to heavy traffic on the A10, A62 and A63. 

A similar protest will take place by truckers in Bayonne, Anglet and Biarritz, on the A63 and A64.

Truckers will be driving at this reduced speed throughout the day, leading to prolonged traffic jams. 

Similar protests in the Loire-Aquitaine department have seen traffic stretching around 45 km on roads around Nantes and the city’s ringroad, said traffic watchdog Bison Futé. 

In Rodez (Aveyron), truckers are aiming to block roads through a ‘snail’ or escargot operation.

Drivers are recommended to check the status of roads before heading out to avoid traffic where possible – read our article here for advice on checking the status of roads near you.

Truckers are protesting for greater direct fuel aid, arguing the €70 million in subsidies offered by the government at the end of last week is insufficient and restrictive.

The Organisation des Transporteurs Routiers Européens (OTRE) is demanding €400 million in direct aid, dropping the price of fuel by 30c per litre for all logistics companies.

This equates to aid of around €1,500 per truck, said OTRE leader in the Pays de l’Adour area Caroline Augé, and mirrors what was offered to the sector by the French government following instability resulting from the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2022.

Protests spread south on Wednesday 

Logistic sector organisations have given regional branches free reign to organise their own protests, leading to a slew of action across the coming days. 

A major protest is set to take place in Toulouse on April 1, with truckers urged to meet at Fondeyre, a logistics hub in the north of Toulouse, before slowly driving into the city and the ringroad to block traffic. 

Drivers are being advised to avoid using the Toulouse ringroad where possible tomorrow.

Similarly, drivers in the south-east are planning to block the A8 around the Capitou toll near Fréjus, with the Fédération nationale des transports routiers (FNTR) also joining protests. 

Further demonstrations are also scheduled for the Île-de-France capital region and Paris.

A column of slow-moving truckers heading towards Paris from across the country is a future plan of the protests, said Ms Augé.

“The only way to make ourselves heard is to go to the capital,” she said.