How will Paris be affected by Thursday's pension strikes?
Thursday marks the latest one-day pension strike, with unions calling on workers to walk about across France - but transport bosses in Paris say they expect services to be nearly normal - here's what to expect in the capital.
Thursday, February 16th marks the latest day of strikes and demos as the government and unions remain locked in a battle over plans to reform the French pension system.
However, the level of support for the strike appears to be falling with fewer and fewer disruptions expected - you can find the forecast for services across France HERE.
In the capital, Thursday is set to be the last one-day strike before public transport bosses have called for 'renewable' strikes beginning on Tuesday, March 7th.
Public transport
Bosses on the city's RATP public transport network say they expect a 'normal or quasi-normal' service on Thursday.
The exception to this is RER B - the suburban train line that links Paris to its two airports - which will see two in three of its normal services running.
In the outer suburbs, the RER and Transilien lines, which are run by SNCF, will see a 'quasi normal' services on lines E, H, P and U while two in three of normal services will run on lines C, J and L and half the normal services on lines D, N and R.
Waste collection
The city's waste collectors have not previously joined in the strikes - the CGT union has urged them to join the 'rolling' strikes from March 7th, but waste collection on Thursday should be unaffected.
Flights
Air traffic controllers will also strike, with 30 percent of flights in and out of Paris Orly airport cancelled on Thursday, as well as cancellations at other French airports. Paris Charles de Gaulle airport is so far unaffected, although airport staff at Orly airport staged a 'surprise' strike on Saturday, which led to cancellations and delays.
Schools
Although schools in much of the country are on holiday, those in Paris do not begin their spring holidays until Friday, so strikes will affect city schools. The last strike saw around a quarter of teachers nationwide walk out, so schools or classes could close on Thursday.
Town halls
On previous strike days some of the city mairies, including Hotel de Ville, have closed for the day in solidarity. City services will continue to run, but if you have an appointment at the mairie you may need to reschedule - the decision on whether to close is up to each arrondissement mayor.
Demo
Once again, the strikes across the country will be accompanied by marches, with the largest one in Paris.
Marchers will gather at the Place de Bastille and the march will begin at 2pm and head to Place de l'Italie, where marchers will arrive at around 5pm.
Previous marches have been largely peaceful, but expect some road closures around the route of the demo.
Driving
This isn't strike related, but people planning to drive in Paris on Thursday should first check speed limits and Crit'Air restrictions - as a pollution spike on Tuesday led local authorities to impose extra restrictions on cars. Forecasters say the high pollution levels are likely to last until Thursday.
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Thursday, February 16th marks the latest day of strikes and demos as the government and unions remain locked in a battle over plans to reform the French pension system.
However, the level of support for the strike appears to be falling with fewer and fewer disruptions expected - you can find the forecast for services across France HERE.
In the capital, Thursday is set to be the last one-day strike before public transport bosses have called for 'renewable' strikes beginning on Tuesday, March 7th.
Public transport
Bosses on the city's RATP public transport network say they expect a 'normal or quasi-normal' service on Thursday.
The exception to this is RER B - the suburban train line that links Paris to its two airports - which will see two in three of its normal services running.
In the outer suburbs, the RER and Transilien lines, which are run by SNCF, will see a 'quasi normal' services on lines E, H, P and U while two in three of normal services will run on lines C, J and L and half the normal services on lines D, N and R.
Waste collection
The city's waste collectors have not previously joined in the strikes - the CGT union has urged them to join the 'rolling' strikes from March 7th, but waste collection on Thursday should be unaffected.
Flights
Air traffic controllers will also strike, with 30 percent of flights in and out of Paris Orly airport cancelled on Thursday, as well as cancellations at other French airports. Paris Charles de Gaulle airport is so far unaffected, although airport staff at Orly airport staged a 'surprise' strike on Saturday, which led to cancellations and delays.
Schools
Although schools in much of the country are on holiday, those in Paris do not begin their spring holidays until Friday, so strikes will affect city schools. The last strike saw around a quarter of teachers nationwide walk out, so schools or classes could close on Thursday.
Town halls
On previous strike days some of the city mairies, including Hotel de Ville, have closed for the day in solidarity. City services will continue to run, but if you have an appointment at the mairie you may need to reschedule - the decision on whether to close is up to each arrondissement mayor.
Demo
Once again, the strikes across the country will be accompanied by marches, with the largest one in Paris.
Marchers will gather at the Place de Bastille and the march will begin at 2pm and head to Place de l'Italie, where marchers will arrive at around 5pm.
Previous marches have been largely peaceful, but expect some road closures around the route of the demo.
Driving
This isn't strike related, but people planning to drive in Paris on Thursday should first check speed limits and Crit'Air restrictions - as a pollution spike on Tuesday led local authorities to impose extra restrictions on cars. Forecasters say the high pollution levels are likely to last until Thursday.
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