Which Departments have 90km/hr roads?

The Allier & the Dordogne (to be reinstated in March, 2021) have become the latest departments to return their main departmental roads from an 80 km/ hr limit back to the original 90 km/ hr limit, but these departments however will probably be some of the last departments to reinstate the old limit on their roads.

In order for a department to return roads to the previous limit, only sections that don’t have left turning points, bus stops, hiking trail crossings, pass through hamlets or are used by farm machinery can have the 90km/ hr limit reinstated.

• The Allier, the Cantal, the Corrèze and the Creuse are the only ones to return 100% of their network to 90 km/ hr.

• Lozère has returned 87% .

For the other departments, the percentages vary:

• 10% Charente, Hautes-Alpes, Indre-et-Loire, Jura, Loir-et-Cher, Loiret

• 16% Haute-Loire, Seine-et-Marne

• 20% Côte-D'or, Haute-Marne

• 22% Sarthe

• 35% Orne

15 departments that have returned to a 90 km/ hr limit have reinstated less than 10% of the network, these are:

• 8%, Calvados, Maine-et-Loire, Hautes-Pyrénées,

• 7%, Cher and Hérault

• 6%, Charente-Maritime, Deux-Sèvres, Dordogne and Mayenne

• 5%, Aube

• 4%, Eure-et-Loir, Indre and Vienne

• 3%, Bas-Rhin,

• 1%, Haut-Rhin (only 16 km of roads have returned to 90 km/ hr)

In total, 32 departments voted for a return to 90 km/ hr while 37 preferred to stay at 80 km/ hr. There also remain the cases of Paris, Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne , where no roads had enough sections that met the criteria to make it worthwhile for a possible return to 90 km/ hr.

Dordogne (24) was still debating the decision in 2020 but they have now belatedly also decided to return just 287 kms of their roads (out of a total of 4,900kms) to the previous limit whilst the Vosges (88) has also started returning 10% (235kms) to 90 km/ hr. The signage in these departments is hoped to be completed by the end of March, 2021.

To further confuse the motorist, the main Route Nationales will remain at a limit of 80km/ hr (unless they are dual carriageway) throughout France as they are maintained by the regional councils & not the departments.