Blogs | The depths and delights of Dieppe
03/12/2013 - 17:59

Crossing the bridge

Viaduc <p>If you venture up to the top of town, past the huge Belv&eacute;d&egrave;re shopping centre and head towards Rouen, you will be able to get a glimpse of the <em>Viaduc de la Scie</em> that is being built at the entrance of Dieppe&rsquo;s conurbation area. Half a mile long, the elegant viaduct spans across the Scie valley, its deck lying 115 feet above the grownd. Last week, twenty months after the beginning of construction, the deck finally reached the other side of the valley, meaning motorists will only have to wait another year now before they can officially &ldquo;cross the bridge&rdquo;.</p> <p>Dieppe inhabitants have been longing for this moment for fifteen years now. The RN 27 highway, that links Rouen to Dieppe, was never actually completed when its construction was carried out at the end of the nineties. Arriving in Man&eacute;houville, a small village at the entrance of the urban area, motorists were greeted by a signboard which read <em>Fin provisoire d&rsquo;am&eacute;nagement</em> (temporary end of highway). It was only in 2009 that the government agreed to release funds for the extension of the highway, and, after long months of prevarication, work finally started in April 2012. The <em>Viaduc de la Scie </em>is the centerpiece of the project, and seeing the bridge actually materialising is reason for rejoicing among all those who commute daily or use it only occasionally.</p> <p>Once the last inch of tar has been laid, hopefully before spring 2015, it will take only thirty minutes to reach Rouen from the entrance to Dieppe, and a little less than two hours to arrive in Paris, providing that the flow of traffic is smooth of course. The local officials are hoping that the extension of the highway will encourage Parisians to visit Dieppe a little more often, they who often head to Deauville or Le Touquet, dubbed <em>Paris Plage</em>, for their weekends. Many tend to forget that Dieppe is actually the closest beach to the capital, and, thanks to the Flaubert bridge in Rouen, and now the Scie Viaduct, the town will soon be closer than ever to the capital.</p> <p>Once the extension has been fully completed, the next step will be to upgrade the whole of the expressway to motorway standards. The RN 27 should then no longer exist, and will make way for the A 151. Things will then look even brighter for Dieppe and its region.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><em>PS. If you want to add a comment to this blog, please click on the link below: 'ajouter un commentaire'.</em></p>

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