26 delegates and partners attended the ICE French Local Association's two day regional weekend in Lyon organised by Lucy Rew, Chairperson, on the 2nd, 3rd October 2010.
The principal technical visit, the A89 motorway link under construction near Tarare, about 35km north-west of Lyon, was to the site of twin tunnels being blasted through variable rock of good quality. Classified as a mountain motorway, the 50km route under construction hugs the side of steep hills involving much cut and fill, seven viaducts and three twin tunnel sections, the longest at nearly 4km. Costing 1.3 billion Euros and due to open in 2012, the new route is being financed by concession agreement and will be a toll road. It extends the existing west to east A89 motorway from Bordeaux via Clermont Ferrand to the outer suburbs of Lyon. Still to be resolved is the link into the existing network north of Lyon. The consultant Egis is acting as supervising engineer for the three tunnels and the group was grateful to Lucy Rew and the other Egis engineers for their explanations during the visit (www.asf.fr/shared/ressources/images/A89/Obj89-2.pdf).
A second technical guided visit was to the site of the future Musée des Confluences situated at the spectacular junction of the rivers Rhône and Saône. This prominent and futuristic building designed by Austrian architect Coop Himmelb(l)au resembles a giant insect or even a space ship. (www.museedesconfluences.fr/chantier/projet.html). It is intended to be more than just a natural history museum and will group existing and new artefacts themed to pose visitors such universal questions as who are we, where do we come from, what are we doing, where are we going? The 180m long by 37m high structure will house 6 400m² of exhibition space but has experienced setbacks due to complicated ground conditions. Costs have escalated but construction has restarted for a 2014 opening.
Other weekend activities included a walking tour through Vieux Lyon with a guide who regaled the fascinating history of Lyon from Roman to Renaissance times. However any visit to Lyon would not be complete without sampling the region's wonderful restaurants (bouchons) which the group visibly enjoyed!
Derek Gear, Secretary, ICE French Local Association