In light of expansion works around the French A31 and its Luxembourgish counterpart, the A3, a new relief road will be built in an effort to diminish heavy traffic.

In response to a parliamentary question, Minister of Mobility Yuriko Backes elaborated on the progress and financing related to each of these projects.

The A31bis is set to merge with the Luxembourgish A3 at the border, with the express goal of easing border workers' commutes. With this in mind - and as is the case with every cross-border project - Luxembourgish authorities are in continuous dialogue with their French colleagues.

However, the project manager (i.e. France) has come under criticism for seeking to introduce a new toll point on the A31bis. This decision can only be made by France, said the Ministry of Mobility when asked for clarification. Given it is up to the French authorities to make such a decision, Luxembourg cannot provide any details, nor can it tell us whether a kind of subscription could be introduced for border workers along this route.

The ministry does not expect a toll station to dramatically increase stress on secondary routes, such as rural or village roads - as these are already saturated during peak times, on both sides of the border. The ministry did add that France and Luxembourg are working on alleviating this 'secondary' traffic.

RTL

A31 and A3 expansion to relieve congestion on secondary routes

The motorway (on both sides of the border) is currently undergoing a transition from two to three lanes, with emergency lanes to be converted for public transport and car sharing purposes.

"These measures will allow the planned infrastructure to be used as efficiently as possible and thus improve the overall traffic situation on the motorway and its side roads," writes the Ministry of Mobility.

Luxembourg co-finances projects on the French side

The aim of Luxembourg's financial commitment is to expand the public transport network to encourage more sustainable mobility via park + ride and train services. France and Luxembourg signed an agreement in 2018, revised in 2021, precisely tailored to this goal.

Luxembourg plans to contribute 440 million euros to rail transport projects on the French side of the border, along with 20 million euros for further infrastructure related to roads and public transport. These figures represent 50 percent of total costs for projects on French soil.

The expansion is intended to improve the public transport service between Luxembourg and Thionville and Metz.