© Ian Huyton
Chambon Tunnel summer 2017 opening
Summer opening confirmed for the holidays & Tour de France
In the ongoing saga of the Chambon tunnel, which has been closed to traffic since a huge landslide threatened to wipe it off the map all together, it looks likely to open again next week.
The tunnel first started to collapse in April 2015 and there has been a prolonged effort to stabilise the mountain and get traffic flowing on that side of the lake again. The tunnel did actually re-open last December (2016), but has since be closed again for further structural work to be carried out.
Next week, on 13th July the tunnel is due to re-open temporarily, in time for the peak summer holiday season. It will partially re-open to traffic with the exception of bikes and HGV's from 13th July to 21st August inclusive, when the Tour de France passes through the region.
Summer opening times:
- 13th July to 24th July - open day and night until 21:00 on the 24th
- 25th July to 21st August - open from 05:00 to 21:00 only
During the summer period, vehicles under 3.5 tonnes and coaches are allowed to use the tunnel. When the tunnel is closed, the emergency road is open, with traffic restrictions in place.
After the 21st August there will be another closure before the tunnel full re-opens and (allegedly) remains open from mid December 2017.
