Road to Major French Ski Resorts Re-Opens
4th February 2025
Last modified on February 8th, 2025
The RN90 in the Tarentaise was hit by a rock slide last weekend causing travel chaos. The clear up work is complete and it opens as the French half-term holidays begin. UPDATED
The RN 90 leads to many major ski areas in the Tarentaise and the road was closed after a landslide blocked it last weekend.
The road is a strategic route in Savoie, as it allows locals, seasonal workers and holidaymakers to reach the ski resorts of Tarentaise and Haute-Tarentaise.
The dual carriageway has re-opened all lanes in both directions after extensive work carried out by the State Road – Direction interdépartementale des routes – Centre-Est.
“What a relief, they did an amazing job to secure the outer road and it will save a lot of grief as French holidays are starting on Saturday so it will be mega busy,” said Xavier Schouller from Peak Retreats to PlanetSKI. The company is a specialist UK operator to resorts in France.
“We will stand down our contingency plan, but a lot of work for us since the rock fall last Saturday.”
The Prefect of Savoie, François Ravier, has thanked all the services and companies involved in reopening this strategic route for Tarentaise and Haute-Tarentaise.
See here for the English version of the official news.
“There was a meeting with the State services on Tuesday afternoon and, given the information gathered on the cliff and the checks that have been carried out, the news that the RN90 will be reopened on Friday night has been confirmed by the prefecture,” said local MP Vincent Rolland earlier.
“The timing is very tight but work continues to meet this deadline. Barring a major new event, we will be able to reopen for the start of the vacation season,” he added.
“We want to welcome holidaymakers in the best possible conditions, so to be able to completely reopen the dual carriageway, both up and down, is a very positive thing,”
Around 68,000 skiers and snowboarders are expected to arrive this weekend.
- 68,000 vehicles traveling up to the ski resorts:
- 22,000 on Friday, February 7
- 32,000 on Saturday, February 8
- 14,000 on Sunday, February 9
- 63,000 vehicles traveling down from the resorts:
- 18,000 on Friday, February 7
- 29,000 on Saturday, February 8
- 16,000 on Sunday, February 9
Three huge rocks fell from a cliff onto the road near Aigueblanche, at around 10.30am last Saturday.
One person was hurt, a 62-year-old woman, who was taken to Albertville hospital with minor injuries.
Thousands of people were delayed with some sleeping in emergency accommodation.
We posted on it at the time and shared some social media posts:
The road was partially re-opened on the evening after the rockfall, but traffic flows were severely limited.
“From 2,200 vehicles an hour, we are down to 900,” said the mayor of La Plagne, Jean-Luc Bloch last weekend.
The road surface had to be repaired, and safety assessments made on other slopes above the RN90.
The RN 90 road gives access to major resorts including Val Thorens, Courchevel, Meribel, Les Menuires, La Plagne, Les Arcs, Val d’Isere and Tignes.
“Geologists will have to carry out a more detailed analysis to understand what happened, and to determine the level of stability and risk,” said the Préfet for the Savoie, François Ravier.
Some sections of the media have implied that the rockfall was due to climate change.
There is no evidence to support this.
“There’s probably no link between what happened this weekend and global warming,” said Ludovic Ravanel, geomorphologist and research director at the CNRS and member of the Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix.
The UK’s main half-term week is Friday 14th February to Friday 21th February.
There are alternative routes to some resorts in the area , but the RN90 is the only main access road to the Tarentaise ski resorts.
Traffic waiting to join the RN90 in Albertville. Image © PlanetSKI
The temporary solution while the RN90 was closed was to divert traffic through the Ponserand tunnel, which has limited capacity.
The RN90 is a weekend bottleneck at the best of times, caused by weight of traffic and often the weather.
Some resorts are asking the government to build a tunnel.
“Of course, it will cost tens of millions of euros, but the tourism economy generates a lot of tax revenue, and provides a livelihood for the whole valley, so it’s in our interest to do it,” said La Plagne.
The transfer company Alpine Fleet has been calling for changes.
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