French Farmers Lift Blockades
5th February 2024
Last modified on February 6th, 2024
The French government has made concessions and the threatened travel disruption that may have affected ski resorts this weekend has eased. UPDATED
French farmers are demanding just prices and less bureaucratic red tape.
We reported on the disruption and its impact on access to ski resorts in the Alps and the Pyrenees in this earlier article on PlanetSKI:
“The farmer strike has been very difficult,” said Simon Carrelli from the ski transfer company, Alpine Fleet.
“It has been fiddly to predict where and when the disruption will strike
“We’ve had have transfers to the Tarentaise resort taking 8+ hours on Saturday 27th Jan for example.
“The Saturday ones are the killers as we have so much volume and stretched to maximum capacity meaning it is harder to move things around.
“A random and calm Monday also turned in to a horror show,”
Simon Carrelli, Alpine Fleet. Image © PlanetSKI
President Emmanuel Macron’s government has now pledged it will scrap plans to raise tax contributions on tractor diesel, ease pesticide regulations, and put a pause on new fallow land rules and additional safety checks on food imports.
The farmers have lifted their blockades.
However, the farming unions are not 100% satisfied and have not ruled out further action.
“We’re not 100 per cent satisfied. It’s certain that there have been measures taken, it’s always better than nothing, but hey, we’re not going to give up,” said a statement from one farmers’ union.
UK ski tour operators we have spoken to are hopeful the transfers at the start on the half-term holidays this weekend will go ahead without incident.
Many though are still warning clients of possible disruptions.
“We will still advise our clients going this weekend and next, to be prepared for delays, just in case,” one said to PlanetSKI.
