“
Of course there is little chance that this will succeed... but any recourse has a symbolic aim!
And there, things have to change
”: Me Rémy Josseaume, lawyer for the association “
For serene and sustainable mobility
” and regular columnist at Le Figaro, summarizes in a few words the purpose of his approach.
On behalf of the association which defends the rights of motorists, this lawyer accustomed to blowing up tickets and license withdrawals, this time tackles a much bigger fish: nothing less than to bring an action against... Élisabeth Borne, as well as the Ministers of Ecological Transition and Transport, Christophe Béchu and Clément Beaune, whom he is attacking before the Court of Justice of the Republic (CJR) for "
willfully endangering the life of another
”.
Read alsoPollution, noise, overconsumption: speed bumps in the sights of driver associations
At issue, according to the lawyer, is the fact that the State maintains on the roads many speed bumps that do not comply with the standards in force - governed, in France, by a decree of 1994 which specifies the restrictive conditions for the installation of these "
backs d'âne
" intended to encourage drivers to slow down.
Among the points of vigilance, the Prime Minister had at the time asked the municipalities to remove all speed bumps exceeding ten centimeters in height, but also those located on axes that are too busy, or likely to be used regularly by ambulances.
However, according to the motorists' association, around a third of the some 450,000 speed bumps on which French vehicles jump daily do not respect the conditions of the decree - a figure which is similar to that, identical, obtained by the association "
40 millions of motorists
" which had launched an online platform to report these illegal speed bumps.
Presumed impact on vehicle consumption
“
Road safety has been improved since the publication of the decree
,” notes Mr. Josseaume, “
and the construction of speed bumps has been accelerated, to such an extent that the practice has exceeded the law.
Finally, Cerema (Centre for studies and expertise on risks, the environment, mobility and development, editor's note) has published a guide to good practices, and during our appeals before the administrative judge, it is this guide which was opposed to us, instead of the 1994 decree. But only the decree has the value of a standard!
“, he exclaims, specifying that a lawyer with the Council of State will also bring the case before the highest French administrative court.
As for the interpellation of the Minister of the Interior on this subject, it does not
We are told to go directly to the municipalities
”.
If the association associates in its complaint the environmental issue with that of the safety of road users, it is because in addition to putting drivers (or passengers) at risk, when an ambulance for example transports a patient suffering from heart problems), excessively prominent speed bumps would also have a detrimental impact on vehicle fuel consumption, and therefore the release of carbon dioxide.
The association wanted to verify this itself by organizing experiments with sensors, and affirms that crossing a non-compliant speed bump increases the instantaneous consumption of the vehicle by 30%.
