Arnage village closed Friday and Saturday evening
Discussion
The main drag through Arnage village, the Avenue Nationale du Arnage, will be closed between 7pm and 1am on Friday and Saturday night.
I only went early evening last year, so it all seemed pretty harmless, may be it got busier later in the evening.
I would imagine the local bars and restaurants will see a large reduction in income.
I only went early evening last year, so it all seemed pretty harmless, may be it got busier later in the evening.
I would imagine the local bars and restaurants will see a large reduction in income.
I attach a copy from a Classic car club in Blois regarding this closure. No one can understand why it was necessary for the Classic, it maybe repeated for the 24 hours.
Carnage in Arnage
123 years of tradition sacrificed in 48 hours on the altar of prohibition!
Forty-eight hours before the opening of Le Mans Classic, the new prefect of the Sarthe department issued a prefectural decree banning car traffic on the central section of road in Arnage.
For those unfamiliar with this area, it's not just any street.
For over a century, it has been one of the beating hearts of Le Mans Classic week. The terraces of the cafes and restaurants are sometimes booked solid a year in advance. Enthusiasts from all over the world gather there to admire the continuous parade of racing cars and classic cars that have made automotive history.
Just look at these photos.
A Ford GT40.
A Mercedes AMG race car.
Porsches.
Century-old Bugattis.
Ferraris.
Unique cars, some worth millions of euros.
But above all…
Thousands of smiles.
The joy in the eyes of enthusiasts.
The joy of older generations rediscovering the cars of their youth.
The joy of children discovering a rolling heritage that no museum can ever replace.
And how can one not be moved seeing children participating in Little Big Mans? Helmets on, focused like their idols, they experience their first laps with extraordinary joy. This is how vocations are born and how the passion for cars is passed on. This heritage only lives on because it is shared.
Yes, it can happen that a few drivers push the boundaries with acceleration or a few drifts.
They are a minority.
But was it really necessary to punish tens of thousands of visitors, shopkeepers, and an entire village?
The police could have been asked to remind the few irresponsible individuals of the rules and issue tickets.
Instead, everything is banned.
And this, just two days before the event.
Another astonishment.
When we organize the Bouchon de Blois, we're required to use concrete blocks, anti-intrusion trucks, and extremely heavy security measures to prevent potential attacks.
So in Arnage, a simple barrier with a few police officers behind it was enough?
Double standards?
The result is undeniable.
By 8 p.m., the terraces were already half empty.
By 10 p.m., the village resembled a desert.
The restaurant owners are disgusted.
They will have to throw away a large portion of the products they bought to welcome the thousands of usual visitors, in addition to suffering a considerable loss of revenue.
But the worst may be yet to come.
Many enthusiasts will leave with a bitter taste in their mouths.
As for us, the decision is made.
Between a Le Mans Classic now split into two editions, forcing us to wait two years to see certain cars again, and this prefectural decision that completely ruins the unique atmosphere of Arnage…
We won't be back.
There are about fifteen of us who have been loyal attendees since the creation of Le Mans Classic.
We won't rent a cottage anymore.
We won't buy our tickets anymore.
We won't pay for parking anymore.
We won't eat lunch in local restaurants anymore.
We won't eat on-site anymore.
This isn't a threat.
It's simply the consequence of a decision we don't understand.
As Georges Pompidou said:
"Stop bothering the French!"
This statement has probably never been more relevant.
⸻
Carnage in Arnage
123 years of tradition sacrificed in 48 hours on the altar of prohibition!
Forty-eight hours before the opening of Le Mans Classic, the new prefect of the Sarthe department issued a prefectural decree banning car traffic on the central section of road in Arnage.
For those unfamiliar with this area, it's not just any street.
For over a century, it has been one of the beating hearts of Le Mans Classic week. The terraces of the cafes and restaurants are sometimes booked solid a year in advance. Enthusiasts from all over the world gather there to admire the continuous parade of racing cars and classic cars that have made automotive history.
Just look at these photos.
A Ford GT40.
A Mercedes AMG race car.
Porsches.
Century-old Bugattis.
Ferraris.
Unique cars, some worth millions of euros.
But above all…
Thousands of smiles.
The joy in the eyes of enthusiasts.
The joy of older generations rediscovering the cars of their youth.
The joy of children discovering a rolling heritage that no museum can ever replace.
And how can one not be moved seeing children participating in Little Big Mans? Helmets on, focused like their idols, they experience their first laps with extraordinary joy. This is how vocations are born and how the passion for cars is passed on. This heritage only lives on because it is shared.
Yes, it can happen that a few drivers push the boundaries with acceleration or a few drifts.
They are a minority.
But was it really necessary to punish tens of thousands of visitors, shopkeepers, and an entire village?
The police could have been asked to remind the few irresponsible individuals of the rules and issue tickets.
Instead, everything is banned.
And this, just two days before the event.
Another astonishment.
When we organize the Bouchon de Blois, we're required to use concrete blocks, anti-intrusion trucks, and extremely heavy security measures to prevent potential attacks.
So in Arnage, a simple barrier with a few police officers behind it was enough?
Double standards?
The result is undeniable.
By 8 p.m., the terraces were already half empty.
By 10 p.m., the village resembled a desert.
The restaurant owners are disgusted.
They will have to throw away a large portion of the products they bought to welcome the thousands of usual visitors, in addition to suffering a considerable loss of revenue.
But the worst may be yet to come.
Many enthusiasts will leave with a bitter taste in their mouths.
As for us, the decision is made.
Between a Le Mans Classic now split into two editions, forcing us to wait two years to see certain cars again, and this prefectural decision that completely ruins the unique atmosphere of Arnage…
We won't be back.
There are about fifteen of us who have been loyal attendees since the creation of Le Mans Classic.
We won't rent a cottage anymore.
We won't buy our tickets anymore.
We won't pay for parking anymore.
We won't eat lunch in local restaurants anymore.
We won't eat on-site anymore.
This isn't a threat.
It's simply the consequence of a decision we don't understand.
As Georges Pompidou said:
"Stop bothering the French!"
This statement has probably never been more relevant.
⸻
- LeMansClassic #Arnage #ClassicCar #AutomotiveHeritage #ClassicCars #AutomotivePassion #LeMans #LittleBigMans #Motorsport #Collection #HistoricRacing #PassingOnTheHeritage #LivingHeritage #Freedom #France #Passion #Mechanics #ClassicCars #VintageCars #Endurance #24HoursOfLeMans
Apparently the mayor of Arnage requested more police presence but the Le Mans authorities implemented the closure.
She made representations to lift the closure but to no avail.
The business owners are not happy for example one bar had 18 extra staff for the night to pay for and the loss of business,
I believe it's new local government after the recent elections.
She made representations to lift the closure but to no avail.
The business owners are not happy for example one bar had 18 extra staff for the night to pay for and the loss of business,
I believe it's new local government after the recent elections.
Odd if deliberate, especially for the Classic and it’s open for the 24.
Sounding like admin error and then Gallic shoulder shrugs after that judging by the other post.
Obliterate one of the busiest trade weekends for those businesses is pretty rough on them.
I gave up going through Arnage to get somewhere on the Friday at the 24hrs and diverted around. Standstill and long tail backs, the atmosphere wasn’t worth the wait.
Sounding like admin error and then Gallic shoulder shrugs after that judging by the other post.
Obliterate one of the busiest trade weekends for those businesses is pretty rough on them.
I gave up going through Arnage to get somewhere on the Friday at the 24hrs and diverted around. Standstill and long tail backs, the atmosphere wasn’t worth the wait.
leyorkie said:
Apparently the mayor of Arnage requested more police presence but the Le Mans authorities implemented the closure.
She made representations to lift the closure but to no avail.
The business owners are not happy for example one bar had 18 extra staff for the night to pay for and the loss of business,
I believe it's new local government after the recent elections.
Sounds like petty local politics, is the mayor of Arnage from a different party than runs Le Mans?She made representations to lift the closure but to no avail.
The business owners are not happy for example one bar had 18 extra staff for the night to pay for and the loss of business,
I believe it's new local government after the recent elections.
The Arnage mayor put out a two page statement this morning explaining that they would never close the road, just more police presence.
Lot of background to the decision eg only been in the job 3 months not experienced this situation before advised that it was like the Wild West at times but no first hand evidence.
Lot of bad feelings for the Prefecture of Le Mans who implemented the closure, but it is turning into a bit of a mud slinging war. The prefecture has kept quiet up to now.
Lot of background to the decision eg only been in the job 3 months not experienced this situation before advised that it was like the Wild West at times but no first hand evidence.
Lot of bad feelings for the Prefecture of Le Mans who implemented the closure, but it is turning into a bit of a mud slinging war. The prefecture has kept quiet up to now.
Edited by leyorkie on Thursday 9th July 11:27
My son was looking forward to arnarge on his 1st visit to Le Mans with me and then we turned up to a ghost town on Saturday evening!
What a bad example of a draconian over reaction to the poor behaviour of a very small number of people that then impacts 1000s of people’s enjoyment (and of course all the local businesses).
What a bad example of a draconian over reaction to the poor behaviour of a very small number of people that then impacts 1000s of people’s enjoyment (and of course all the local businesses).
ps01 said:
My son was looking forward to arnarge on his 1st visit to Le Mans with me and then we turned up to a ghost town on Saturday evening!
What a bad example of a draconian over reaction to the poor behaviour of a very small number of people that then impacts 1000s of people s enjoyment (and of course all the local businesses).
Rather than being a "draconian over reaction to the poor behaviour of a very small number of people" it sounds much more like "someone in the Le Mans/Sarthe politics has issues with the mayor of Arnage and is playing a willy measuring game with them".What a bad example of a draconian over reaction to the poor behaviour of a very small number of people that then impacts 1000s of people s enjoyment (and of course all the local businesses).
Speaking to locals in Arnage on Friday, a few local car owners were causing problems for the 24 and so this action was taken. A police foot patrol were eating their food outside one of the local bars and they were getting stick from bar owners/restaurant owners etc.
The funny thing was that at the roundabout by the L'Adresse they had closed the road from there towards Super U, but left the road open from L'Adresse going south, leaving cars to go up and down under the watchful gaze of Frog Plod on foot.
The funny thing was that at the roundabout by the L'Adresse they had closed the road from there towards Super U, but left the road open from L'Adresse going south, leaving cars to go up and down under the watchful gaze of Frog Plod on foot.
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