Getting to Charles de Gaulle Today May Depend on 2,000 Taxis

Saturday, October 17 is shaping up as a difficult travel day in Paris, though not because of a flight strike. Sortiraparis reports that a crew strike notice for October 17 to 21 was suspended by the inter-union, so flights are expected to depart normally. The trouble is on the ground, where road transport unions including FO Transports have filed strike notices and slow-rolling blockades could affect the périphérique and airport highways.

Taxi drivers from Team Taxi planned a slow-rolling protest of about 2,000 cabs from Porte Maillot toward Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle, and it could continue through Saturday. The outlet’s advice is to take the RER B rather than drive or rely on a cab. At Orly, the RER C will not serve the airport this weekend because of construction, so travelers should use line 14 or the OrlyVal shuttle from Antony.

Inside the city, RATP is closing 25 stations on lines 1 to 9 and 12 to 14, plus the RER A stop at Charles de Gaulle-Étoile, at the request of the Police Prefecture. Closures start at 8 a.m., trains pass through without stopping and no connections are provided. No public transport strike has been announced, and no SNCF disruptions had been reported at the time of writing.

The main procession leaves Place de la République at 2 p.m. for Place de Clichy, with other gatherings later in the day. The Interior Ministry expects about 500 actions across France, and demonstrations are banned around the Élysée, major ministries and Paris train stations. Similar closures were used on October 13, when eight stations were shut, so visitors should check RATP and SNCF Connect before heading out.

Sources: Sortiraparis (October 17), Sortiraparis (October 13)