According to Le Monde,
150 000 manifestants en France selon la police, 300 000 selon la CGT. Overall in France, there were 150.000 protesters according to the police; according to the union group, 300.000.
9 h 10 : la direction de la RATP prévoit un métro sur trois vendredi
One in three metro trains is foreseen for Friday.
La RATP prévoit un métro sur trois vendredi 19 octobre et attend de fortes perturbations pour les RER A et B, les bus et les tramways, certains syndicats ayant reconduit la grève contre la réforme des régimes spéciaux de retraite. Selon une porte-parole de la RATP, un tiers du trafic des métros à Paris sera assuré.
The RATP (Associated Network of Parisian Transports) predicts 1/3 metros on Friday, and is expecting disruptions for the urban networks A and B, buses and trams. Some unions have redirected the strike against special directives and reforms for retirement.
17 h 25 : situation normale dans les aéroports Normal status in the airports.
La situation était "tout à fait normale" jeudi à 17 heures dans les aéroports d'Orly et de Roissy, a-t-on appris auprès de la direction générale de l'aviation civile (DGAC) qui n'a enregistré dans la journée ni retard de vols, ni gréviste parmi les contrôleurs aériens.
The situation is completely normal Thursday at 5 PM in the two Parisian airports of Orly and Roissy. There wasn't a single slowdown of flights nor striker amongst air-traffic controllers.
17 h 13 : environ 25 000 manifestants à Paris
Environ 25 000 manifestants participaient, jeudi après-midi à Paris, à la manifestation parisienne contre la réforme des régimes spéciaux de retraite, selon la CGT. Pour la police, le défilé syndicale comptait environ 21 000 personnes.
Approximately 25.000 protesters participated Thursday afternoon in Paris at a protest against the proposed special retirement plans. According to the police, the union parade consisted of 21.000 people.
Ah, nothing like a good old French strike.
When I lived in Paris in 1977-78, we had a Black Tuesday — I no longer remember which day of the week it was — in early December. We'd all been warned the week before that everything would shut down, including the electricity. The strikers/unions thoughtfully allowed all the Parisians to make their morning coffee and get their breakfast before turning off the juice. Then, it was spotty electrical coverage throughout the city for the rest of the day. The Métro was running maybe 1/8 trains and the few that ran went about 5kms/hour (about my pace walking the Camino). For yuks, I tried to take my usual route to classes. It took 45 minutes to go one stop so I bailed and walked the rest.
Traffic was a mess because the stoplights didn't work and there were no police around.
It was a quasi holiday because no one could get anything accomplished.
Nor did it make sense: I went into the PTT (post office/telephones) to buy some stamps. France always had beautiful stamps and one could ask for specific timbres de collection — collection stamps. I did, carefully chosing the number and cost of the stamps.
When I asked the person behind the counter for several of these stamps, she said she couldn't do it because she was on strike. She could sell me the standard stamps, but not the special ones. — OK, I said. I need four stamps at 80 centimes (or whatever it was).
She looked in her drawer and shook her head. Rien. She sighed.
— Oh, well, then I will have to sell you the special stamps because there are no regular ones at that price.
— Whatever (not as commonly said back then as now).
Such is la vie en France en grève.
My parents are flying to Paris, then Bordeaux tonight/tomorrow but they should be able to stay out of the fray since they are going to meet up with a tour group.
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