Following a serious accident on Monday 29 June at the intersection of the D51 and D55 motorways in Givenchy-en-Goël, in Pas-de-Calais, the mayor is calling for new measures to ensure the safety of an intersection he considers particularly accident-prone.
Monday, June 29, 2026, 8:00 p.m. At the warning of a neighbor, Pierre Sénéchal, the mayor of Givenchy-en-Goël, headed to the intersection of departmental roads D51 and D55. The scene on site is impressive. “one car was standing on the roof, the other was missing the front end and the engine fell on the road. A young woman in her 20s was screaming on the ground.” says the elected official.
Emergency services quickly treated the young woman, who suffered serious injuries. “I don’t have two hands to count the injury accidents at this intersection.“, regrets the adviser who says he sees”accidents happen regularly“There are a lot of motorists on this route connecting Lens to Arras. At this intersection, the priority road is only distinguished by a stop sign.
After this incident, Pierre Sénéchal decided to take up his pen on the city’s Facebook page and demand new developments.
“Installation of traffic lights now seems to be a necessity. However, I would like to note that this development, as well as its maintenance, is the responsibility of the Department and under no circumstances can it be financed by the municipality.“, he wrote
The municipality has installed chicanes and speed bumps in the past, but to no avail. “To do this, I had to ask permission from the department, but in the end I pay.“, the mayor regrets.
Contacted France 3 Hauts-de-FranceThe Pas-de-Calais department clarifies the distribution of skills:
“In cities, including on departmental roads, the powers of the traffic police belong to the mayor. Thus, it is he who must evaluate the safety measures that need to be implemented taking into account local problems and issue the necessary orders to regulate traffic.“In short, if a municipality wants a traffic light, it should install one.
The powers of the traffic police belong to the mayor.
Pas-de-Calais Department
The department nevertheless guarantees that he will remain.”Naturally, he is attentive to the security of his network“. Within “his active policy of supporting territories“, it can provide financial support to municipalities wishing to implement safety measures on departmental roads located in urban areas.”In the specific case of the intersection of RD 51 and 55, the municipality of Givenchy-en-Goël has not made a request to date.“
The city mayor should write a letter to the department in the coming days.