Privatized motorways: the end of a rest area?

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At the mobility financing conference beginning this Monday, May 5, the government will launch a review of the management of these roads, which have proven to be very lucrative for private concessionaires. It will even consider possible renationalization.

At a motorway service station in Nemours (Seine-et-Marne), in August 2022. (Denis Allard/Libération)

by Franck Bouaziz and Damien Dole

With motorway concessions set to expire between 2031 and 2036, is the time right to renationalize them? This is the question that the "Ambition France Transports" mobility financing conference , which opens this Monday, May 5 and is expected to last at least two and a half months, will address. François Bayrou will be speaking at the event in Marseille. The four "workshops" include rail, Metropolitan Regional Express Services (SERM), and freight. However, one of the highlights of these discussions, which will involve elected officials, NGOs, associations, and professional representatives, will focus on motorway networks. The renationalization option will not be supported by the Ministry of Transport, but Bercy affirms that "the idea will be to study the different possible models" without any particular red line.

One thing is certain: the current model of motorway concessions is unanimously opposed by politicians. "The economic model is designed in such a way that any investment is offset by an increase in