Bondy: 25 t of waste collected in one night on the A3

The backhoe loader swallows everything in its path. Waste paper, leftover fast food, plastic bottles, cigarette butts… “Waste like this, we collect 25 tonnes per night during cleaning operations. Motorists take the road for a garbage can. They throw their trash out the window without worrying about the environment. So imagine the damage on a plot like the A3 between Aulnay-sous-Bois and Bondy, where 180,000 vehicles pass per day… ”, notes an employee of the maintenance team of the Direction des Routes d’Ile- de-France (DiRIF), which intervenes this week and next week * on the borders of the A3 at the level of the city of Bondy.

If the interventions have already started in December on the parts accessible from the streets located below the motorway, the DiRIF is now tackling those only reachable from the roadway, thus requiring the night closure of the A3. “For years, what we call the abandoned – the green spaces that line the roads – have been transformed into real public waste reception centers. It’s a vicious circle, because the dirtier a place, the less it is respected. However, their access makes them very difficult to clean, ”emphasizes the mayor (PS) of Bondy, Sylvine Thomassin. These abandoned belonging to the State, the municipality and the prefecture of Seine-Saint-Denis have just made an agreement on their maintenance. “The State has undertaken to thoroughly clean the 18,000 m2 of border, to clear them and to screen the abandoned areas that overlook the neighboring streets to prevent pedestrians from depositing their bins there. We will take care of the bi-annual maintenance thereafter, ”adds the city councilor.

Grids have been installed at the bottom of the embankments bordering the A3

Chemin de Groslay on the border between Bondy and Bobigny. LP / HH

This major cleaning will cost the State 150,000 €. Maintenance will require a budget of € 50,000 per year. “It is a necessary expenditure, because it is the image of our municipality and our department that is at stake. Not to mention the consequences that these waste reception centers have on the quality of life of our residents. In Bondy, 500 families have a direct view of the abandoned from their windows, ”notes the elected representative.

At the bottom of the embankments bordering the A3, chemin de Groslay, on the border between Bondy and Bobigny, residents have been mobilizing for years to ensure that these spaces are cleaned. “The neglected were for a time occupied by Roma camps. But nothing had been cleared after their departure. We even saw rats! We have made numerous petitions. Now that they have installed barriers, I hope that will change ”, sighs a resident of the neighborhood who, before rejoicing, waits to see“ over time ”if bad habits do not return quickly.

* The A3 will be closed between Porte de Bagnolet and Garonor in the Paris-suburb direction on the nights of Monday 20, Tuesday 21, Wednesday 22 and Thursday 23 March from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.