Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery

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Mon 2 Sep 2019 10:11
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - catsdad
Last week I was a passenger being driven south of Geneva on the autoroute. We were approaching a tunnel. Without prior warning both lanes at the tunnel entrance showed red crosses above them. Traffic immediately in front of us carried on as they were pretty much committed but my mate rightly stopped. Then two staggered barriers came down across the lanes, like level crossing barriers.

A second or two later a French plate car came from behind us at a fair speed and slalomed the barriers. We sat and after about thirty seconds the barriers lifted and the signs went out. We drove carefully onwards but there was no sign of any incident.

I can't see anything online about these lights and barriers. We wondered if it was to control pollution? It seemed pretty dangerous to stop the running lanes without any form of countdown.

Anybody any idea what was going on?

Edited by catsdad on 02/09/2019 at 10:13

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Mon 2 Sep 2019 11:05
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - focussed

After much googling I came up with this:-

To improve security on this stretch along the Swiss border, the company Autoroutes and Tunnel du Mont-Blanc (ATMB) has decided to install automatic gates in Annemasse and Saint-Julien-En-Genevois, reports Le Dauphine . As soon as a false alert is triggered, they will go down to prevent vehicles from accessing the A40. Their installation is scheduled for 2017.

( security = safety usually in french)

https://www.tdg.ch/geneve/grand-geneve/a40-dote-barrieres-anticontresens/story/12826122

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Mon 2 Sep 2019 12:48
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - FP

The article referred to speaks about "contresens", which means "travelling in the wrong direction/against the flow."

The article is all about an incident on the A40 in March 2016, when an elderly driver went the wrong way down the motorway and caused a serious accident. Although a warning had been given and access to the motorway closed, the collision could not be prevented.

The new barriers are part of an automatic system designed to cut off access earlier.

The relevant bit in the article says: "Dès qu'une alerte contresens sera déclenchée, celles-ci s'abaisseront pour empêcher les véhicules d'accéder à l'A40." (Translation: As soon as a “wrong-direction” alert is triggered, [the barriers] will drop to prevent vehicles from accessing the A40.)

Sorry, Focussed, but Google’s translation of “alerte contresens” as “false alert” is wrong.

P.S. The French word "sens" can be tricky to understand; often it means "direction", but that translation doesn't always work. Other meanings on road signs (usually with just the obvious symbols and no words) include "Sens interdit" = No Entry; "Sens unique" = one-way; "Sens à droite" = turn right etc.)

Edited by FP on 02/09/2019 at 12:52

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Mon 2 Sep 2019 14:08
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - catsdad
Thanks for your replies. I only Googled English sites.

I assume it was a false alarm then as I am sure we'd have noticed a car on the wrong side. And no it wasn't us Brits coming the wrong way!

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Mon 2 Sep 2019 14:11
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - daveyjp
Could also have been a test of the system.
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Mon 2 Sep 2019 15:05
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - oldroverboy.

I had a buttock clenching moment a few years ago, when on a belgian motorway a driver came towards me on the "wrong" side of the motorway. He missed me, but lost control and did several 360 degree spins. I did an emergency braking maneuver, ( Thanks ABS!) and pulled up on the hard shoulder, and then drove a bit off onto the grass,

When I opened his car door he fell out on top of me. P***sed as a whatever. when the wacht came he was promptly arrested.

Don't laugh, but cured my constipation a bit later.

Edited by oldroverboy. on 02/09/2019 at 15:07

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Mon 2 Sep 2019 19:44
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - focussed

Sorry, Focussed, but Google’s translation of “alerte contresens” as “false alert” is wrong.

Yes - google translate often comes up with garbage - for more important stuff that I can't or don't want to do I use https://www.deepl.com/translator which is pretty good.

It comes up with "misdirection alert" which pretty much sums it up, but is not available as a right click function, it's got to be a copy and paste job.

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Mon 2 Sep 2019 22:51
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - Smileyman

If I recall correctly some years ago there was a nasty fire in the Mont Blanc tunnel, presumably this is a security system to prevent vehicles driving into danger - fire, smoke or fumes all of which are equally nasty.

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Tue 3 Sep 2019 18:13
Any - French tunnel dropping barriers mystery - concrete

That is correct Smileyman, however nothing takes into account the French attitude! They just blunder on ahead regardless! Crazy folks. I find sudden road closures are a feature of the Swiss-Franco border areas; been held up there many times for no discernible reason. C'est la vie!! Cheers Concrete

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