What Travelers Need to Know About the ‘Block Everything’ Strike in France

 

What Travelers Need to Know About the ‘Block Everything’ Strike in France

 

The planned shutdown, which will affect transit in and beyond Paris, dovetails with the tube strike in London.

 

Tariro Mzezewa

By Tariro Mzezewa

Sept. 9, 2025

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/09/travel/france-strike-what-to-know.html

 

French workers angry about austerity measures proposed by the former prime minister François Bayrou, whose government collapsed on Monday, are planning to strike on Wednesday, a move they hope will bring the country to a near standstill.

 

Despite Mr. Bayrou failing a confidence vote, protesters still plan to strike, describing their frustrations as being with President Emmanuel Macron as well.

 

“The fall of the government is good, but it’s insufficient,” Sud-Rail, a major trade union, said in a post on X on Monday. The union, the third largest rail union in France, whose members mostly work for the national railway company Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français, urged its members and the public to strike.

 

Individuals and unions across sectors, including rail and air, say their members will participate. The two-day strike is expected to affect domestic and international travel around Paris and across the country.

 

The planned strike, which dovetails with a London Underground strike, presents transportation challenges for visitors. Here’s what travelers need to know.

 

Who is striking and why?

Earlier in the summer, Mr. Bayrou announced his intention to slash France’s 43 billion euro (about $50.46 billion) deficit by cutting two public holidays, freezing pensions and welfare payments and implementing other austerity measures. The plan was met with anger from those who feel that the measures would unfairly hurt middle and lower-class workers.

 

A movement called Bloquons Tout, or Let’s Block Everything, gained popularity following Mr. Bayrou’s announcement, leading to calls on X, TikTok and other social media platforms for a strike. In addition to halting local travel, organizers want supporters to withdraw their money from large banks and boycott major businesses like Amazon and the supermarket chain Carrefour, companies that they view as guilty of exploiting workers while benefiting from tax breaks and public subsidies.

 

Participants also plan to gather at popular transit centers like Chatelet-Les Halles, at Paris city gates like Porte de Bagnolet, Porte de la Chapelle and Porte d’Italie, and at train and bus depots, among other areas.

 

What modes of transportation will be affected?

The strike is expected to affect transportation to and from the Charles de Gaulle Airport outside Paris.Credit...Thibaud Moritz/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

It remains unclear how widespread Wednesday’s strike will be, but several unions across the train and air travel industries plan to participate. Sud Aérien, a union representing air travel employees, including airline staff, maintenance workers and ground agents, urged its members to strike. It also called for a rally at Charles de Gaulle Airport. A union representing air and rail workers also encouraged “massive participation.”

 

A representative for the RER rail network around Paris said in an email that trains will run normally on all but one line — the RER B, which links Charles de Gaulle Airport to the center of the city. As an alternative, travelers can take the Roissybus shuttle, which, from 6 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., carries travelers between Charles de Gaulle and the Opéra-Scribe stop in the center of Paris. Taxis and private car services will also be available on Wednesday. Still, travelers should leave plenty of time for their commutes, since roads may be blocked by demonstrators.

 

In a news release, R.A.T.P., the agency that runs Paris transit, including the RER, said that metro and bus service across the city will be “almost normal” while tram service will be “normal.” The national high-speed TGV will be running normally, according to the national rail service.

 

Eurostar, whose trains travel from London to Paris and Lille, said in a statement on its site that service is expected to be normal, but public transport and domestic train traffic could be affected. “If you have a connecting journey, please check for travel updates ahead of your trip,” the statement said. “You may need to allow extra time for your journey.”

 

Where is the strike and how long will it last?

Disruptions will extend beyond Paris. On Monday, the Civil Aviation Authority warned people traveling through airports in Nice on the southeastern coast, Marseilles in the south, and the cities of Bastia, Ajaccio, Figari and Calvi on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica to expect delays and cancellations. The aviation authority urged travelers to contact their respective airlines for more information.

 

Although the “Block Everything” strike is scheduled for two days, various labor unions have also called for work stoppages on Sept. 18. Among them is the country’s largest air traffic controller union, which represents 60 percent of workers; the union said its members will go on strike for 24 hours. When air traffic controllers went on strike in July, more than 1,500 flights were canceled, affecting some 300,000 passengers across Europe.

 

Is this strike connected to the London tube strike?

Wednesday’s strike in France coincides with the London underground tube strikes that began in earnest on Monday and disrupted travel for millions of commuters in the city. People in London can use buses and trains, and many residents plan to ride bikes to their destinations for the duration of the strike. Trams and the Elizabeth Line, running from the east to the west side of the city are also running.

 

The French strike also happens to be at the same time as a K.L.M strike, which is leading the airline to cancel 100 flights, affecting 27,000 travelers on Wednesday, according to Reuters. Both stoppages follow months of protests from employees across Europe and share similar demands, including a desire for higher pay and better work conditions.

 

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Tariro Mzezewa, a former national correspondent at The Times, is a reporter who writes about culture and style.