Périphérique (Paris)

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Périphérique is the French term for a ring road (U.S.: Beltway), a motorway or freeway encircling or orbiting a large city. Paris' périphérique (Boulevard Périphérique) is one of the busiest freeway/motorways in Europe, with traffic between 1.1 and 1.2 million vehicles per day in 2002.

The Boulevard Periphérique Extérieur near Porte Dauphine.

The most famous of these is the Périphérique around Paris, a frequently congested stretch of 8-lane dual carriageway, which, unusually, is limited to 80 km/h (50 mph), does not feature a hard shoulder, and gives priority to entering vehicles. It was built in the early 1970s on the empty space left abandoned after the destruction of the defense wall of Paris in the 1920s, and completed on April 25, 1973. It is the generally-accepted boundary between the city proper (approx. 2 million inhabitants) and the suburbs (more than 9 million inhabitants), as it's built along Paris's administrative limit (excluding Paris heliport and the outlying woods of Boulogne and Vincennes).

The Périphérique is administered by the City of Paris government.

1 Statistics
2 Peculiarities
3 List of junctions
4 Other périphériques
5 See also

[edit] Statistics

road
- total length: 35.04 km (21.8 miles)
- surface: 1,380,000 m²
bridges, exchangers, surroundings
- 156 off on- and off-ramps, total of 54 km (33 miles) and 380,000 m²
- 6 exchangers, 44 access points
- 300,000 m² service pavement
protections, greenery, boards
- 24 noise shields, totalling 51,100 m² on 14 km (8.5 miles)
- 110 km (70 miles) of concrete and metal railings (being suppressed)
- 440,000 m² of greens or woods
- 10,000 trees
- 550 advertisement boards
population and inconveniences
- 100,000 inhabitants live alongside it
- 40% in trenches, including several covered sections (especially those of the Bois de Boulogne and Bois de Vincennes), elevated on 50%, and terrain-level on the remaining 10%; 30% are in tunnel, covered or shielded by noise shields;
crossings
- 148 bridges above it
- 17 métro lines, 66 roads, 4 pedestrian bridges, 3 pedestrian tunnels cross it.
equipment
- 38,490 light sources
- 99 CCTV cameras
- 166 emergency call booths
- 199 counting stations, 759 sensors
- 324 variable display panels
10,600 incidents per year (64% breakdowns, 33% accidents and 3% miscellaneous)
construction cost (1973 value): 305 million Euro, paid for 40% by the State, 40% by the City and 20% by the District.
traffic statistics
- traffic in 2002: between 1.1 and 1.2 million vehicles per day: 89% light vehicles, 7% trucks, 4% motorbikes; 25% of the traffic in Paris.
- average trip: 7 km (4.5 miles)
- average speed on working days (7 h-21 h): 43 km/h (26 mph)
- speed limit: 80 km/h (50 mph)

[edit] Peculiarities

French people most often refer to the Paris Périphérique as "le Périph" (IPA: /perif/). France's anglophone community occasionally refers to it as the "Périfreak", attesting to the many accidents and thick traffic formerly associated with it. However, permanent automatic speed cameras have been set up on the Périphérique since 2002, and cases of excess speed driving as well as mortality have considerably decreased in the space of two years. Visitors who have not driven in Paris since 2002 are often surprised at the new driving behaviours on the Périphérique when they return to Paris.

Although the Parisian beltway is controlled-access for its entire length, all standard road maps do not show it as a true freeway (autoroute in French) because of its substandard construction; instead, it is depicted as a kind of expressway or super-arterial. It is notorious for its sharp curves, sharp grade changes, low tunnels, and short ramps. It does have an innovative feature where sensors in the road detect traffic speeds, and overhead electronic signs display the projected travel time to the next two or three exits.

[edit] List of junctions


Junction number	Junction name	Outer lanes exits	Inner lanes exits
1	Porte de Bercy	A4	Quai de Bercy
2	Porte d'Ivry	None	Avenue d'Ivry
3	Porte d' Italie	A6^B	Avenue d'Italie
4	Porte de Gentilly	A6^A	Rue de l'Amiral Mouchez
5	Porte d'Orléans	Avenue Briand	Avenue de Maine
6	Porte de Châtillon	Avenue P. Brossollette	Avenue Jean Moulin
7	Porte de Vanves	Rue Ernest Reugan	Boulevard Brune
8	Porte Brancion	Rue Jean Bleuzen	Avenue Brancion
9	Porte de la Plaine	Rue Camliant	Place des Insurges de Varsovie
10	Porte de Sèvres	None	Rue Balard
11	Porte de Saint-Cloud	Route de la Reine	Avenue de Versailles
12	Porte Molitor	Boulevard d'Auteuil	Rue Poussin
13	Porte d'Auteuil	A13	Rue Poussin
14	Porte de Passy	Rue de l'Hippodrome	Rue de Ranelagh
15	Porte de la Muette	None	Avenue H. Martin
16	Porte Dauphine	Route de Suresnes	Avenue Foch
17	Porte Maillot	Avenue Charles De Gaulle	La Défense
18	Porte de Champerret	Boulevard Bineau	Avenue de Villiers
19	Porte d'Asnières	Rue Victor Hugo	Rue de Tocqueville
20	Porte de Clichy	Boulevard Jean Jaurès	Avenue de Clichy
21	Porte de Saint-Ouen	Avenue G. Péri	Avenue de Saint-Ouen
22	Porte de Clignancourt	Avenue Michelet	Boulevard Ornano
23	Porte de la Chapelle	A1	Rue de la Chapelle
24	Porte d'Aubervilliers	Avenue Victor Hugo	Rue d'Aubervilliers
25	Porte de la Villette	Avenue Jean Jaurès	Avenue de Flandre
26	Porte de Pantin	Avenue Jean Lolive	Avenue Jean Jaurès
27	Porte du Pré-Saint-Gervais	Rue G. Péri	Rue Haxo
28	Porte des Lilas	Rue de Paris	Rue de Belleville
29	Porte de Bagnolet	A3	Rue Belgrand
30	Porte de Montreuil	Rue de Paris	Rue d'Avron
31	Porte de Vincennes	Avenue de Paris	Cours de Vincennes
32	Porte de Saint-Mandé	Avenue Victor Hugo	Avenue de Saint-Mandé
33	Porte Dorée	Rue de Ceinture du Lac Daumsenil	Avenue Daumesnil
34	Porte de Charenton	Avenue de Gravelle	Rue de Charenton