French authorities have announced that a €6m, 5.3km long temporary access road to the famous French ski resort of La Grave will open on November 23rd, in time for the new ski season.
The road is a stop gap solution to a problem identified in April at the end of last winter when the road tunnel on the main D1091 road from Grenoble to the resort was found to have cracks in it and was closed.
Sandwiched between steep mountain sides and Lake Chambon, the only way to la Grave was a huge circular route to the north which tripled or quadrupled access times making the ski area non-viable for all but the most determined to get there, as well as causing serious practical and logistical issues for la Grave's residents. Supplies had to be flown in by helicopter or brought in by boat across the lake according to reports.
Although less seriously affected than La Grave, larger ski areas such as les 2 Alpes were also most easily accessed by the closed road.
Tendering is now underway for a new tunnel, with the hope that it will be ready in a year's time for winter 16-17.
The temporary road, which goes around the south side of the lake rather than the north where the existing route is, is reported to be 4-6m wide so traffic can pass in both directions in most cases, but only lighter vehicles (it seems no full sized buses or lorries) will be able to use it and there'll be a 30km/h speed limit.
Black Diamond's BDTV has also just launched an online video on La grave's famous lift: A Simple Machine.