A69 motorway: a construction site at the heart of a legal saga full of twists and turns

Was the environmental permit for the construction of the A69 motorway, which will eventually link Toulouse to Castres, granted in accordance with the law? The administrative courts will rule on Thursday 27 February on the legality of this decree signed on 1 March 2023.

If the Toulouse administrative court annuls this order, the work will be suspended pending a probable appeal hearing. Such a decision would be unprecedented for a road project of this magnitude in France, and would open a new chapter in the legal battle waged by opponents of the project for two years.

► July 2018: declaration of public utility

The government of Édouard Philippe declared the construction of the motorway link between Castres and Verfeil, around fifty kilometres long, to be of public utility in July 2018.

Four years later, in April 2022, Prime Minister Jean Castex approved the A69 concession contract with the Atosca company. The decree provides that the subsidiary of the NGE group will ensure the construction and maintenance of the motorway, as well as the operation of the future toll.

► March 2023: start of work and first legal action

Construction of the A69 will begin in March 2023. At that time, an environmental association will appeal to the interim relief judge of the Council of State to suspend the felling of trees on the route of the future motorway.

However, as no new cuts are planned before September, the highest administrative court considers that this request is not urgent and rejects it.

► June 2023: appeal by around ten associations

In June, around ten associations and unions, including France Nature Environnement, Friends of the Earth and the Confédération paysanne, filed an appeal with the Toulouse administrative court against the environmental authorisations allowing the work to be carried out.

The applicants are filing an interim injunction to suspend the work so that it can be interrupted pending the judgment on the merits of the case, in order to "avoid irreversible damage to the environment" .

After studying the 12,000 pages of the file, the interim relief judge rejected their request to suspend the work. After this failure, opponents of the A69 turned to the Council of State, which made the same decision.

► April 2024: criminal complaints filed

While waiting for the judgment of the Toulouse administrative court on the merits, associations are turning to criminal justice in April 2024. France Nature Environnement, Friends of the Earth and Eau Secours 31 are filing a complaint against Atosca accusing it of discharging polluted water into nature.

The collective La Voie est libre has announced that it is making a report to the National Financial Prosecutor's Office, questioning the legality of the financial structure of the project.

► June 2024: the duration of the targeted concession

In June 2024, three associations launched a new procedure before the Council of State. Their goal? To have the contract between the State and the concessionaire cancelled, which, according to them, runs for too long. A clause provides that Atosca will operate the A69 for 55 years, compared to the usual 25 to 30 years, their lawyer denounces.

► August 2024: complaint against the mayor of Maurens-Scopont

In the summer, work on the future A69 continues, but opponents are still trying to stop it at all costs. The Way is clear and Friends of the Earth Midi-Pyrénées announce that they are filing criminal complaints against the mayor of Maurens-Scopont, whom they accuse of having used his influence to change the route of the future motorway.

► November 2024: hearing on the merits

At the end of November 2024, a few days before the hearing on the merits of the Toulouse administrative court, the procedure took a real turn for the worse. Public rapporteur Mona Rousseau submitted her report, arguing for the total cancellation of the order authorizing the work.

The magistrate, responsible for providing an independent analysis of the dispute, disputes the imperative and major nature of the public interest of the project, considering it "excessive" to speak of a situation of isolation for the Castres-Mazamet sector.

This legal principle is at the heart of the environmental authorisation obtained by the concessionaire to be able to build the motorway: without a public interest of primary importance, Atosca would not have the right to deviate from environmental legislation on protected species and habitats.

► February 2025: second hearing at the administrative court

While the Toulouse administrative court should have ruled on the legality – or not – of the order authorizing the work on the A69 in the days following the hearing on November 25, it finally reopened the investigation after new documents were added to the file. While allowing the work to continue.

A second hearing on the merits finally took place on February 18. The public rapporteur reiterated her conclusions in favor of stopping the work. The judges have reserved their decision until February 27.