Black Saturday (France)
Encyclopedia
Black Saturday refers, in France
, to the busiest day of the year when many people go on holiday. This Saturday is usually at the end of July, though in 2007 both the last Saturday of July and the first Saturday of August are designated as Black Saturdays.
Autoroute du Soleil
, the highway
to the south of France
and Spain
is usually particularly busy. In 2004 there was more than 700 km in accumulated traffic congestion.
The black colour is the qualification, with which the French government web site Bison Futé designates a day with extrêmement dense (extremely busy) traffic. The French newspaper
s call this day samedi noir after Bison Futé's qualification . Usually, the French call these days les jours de grands départs (days of great departures). In Dutch language
, this French phenomenon has been known as zwarte zaterdag long before the French adopted the term samedi noir, both meaning (literally) Black Saturday.
The term Black Saturday may also refer to Saturday July 31, 1982, when the worst road accident in French history happened. Around 1:45 AM, a coach
collided into passenger cars near Beaune
in dense holiday traffic during rainfall. The collision and subsequent fire killed 53 people, among which 46 were children. After this crash, regulation was enforced to prohibit the travel of groups of children during this part of the year.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, to the busiest day of the year when many people go on holiday. This Saturday is usually at the end of July, though in 2007 both the last Saturday of July and the first Saturday of August are designated as Black Saturdays.
Autoroute du Soleil
Autoroute du Soleil
Autoroute du Soleil can refer to:*A6 autoroute *A7 autoroute...
, the highway
Highway
A highway is any public road. In American English, the term is common and almost always designates major roads. In British English, the term designates any road open to the public. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway system", a "highway network", or a...
to the south of France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
is usually particularly busy. In 2004 there was more than 700 km in accumulated traffic congestion.
The black colour is the qualification, with which the French government web site Bison Futé designates a day with extrêmement dense (extremely busy) traffic. The French newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
s call this day samedi noir after Bison Futé's qualification . Usually, the French call these days les jours de grands départs (days of great departures). In Dutch language
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
, this French phenomenon has been known as zwarte zaterdag long before the French adopted the term samedi noir, both meaning (literally) Black Saturday.
The term Black Saturday may also refer to Saturday July 31, 1982, when the worst road accident in French history happened. Around 1:45 AM, a coach
Coach (vehicle)
A coach is a large motor vehicle, a type of bus, used for conveying passengers on excursions and on longer distance express coach scheduled transport between cities - or even between countries...
collided into passenger cars near Beaune
Beaune
Beaune is the wine capital of Burgundy in the Cote d'Or department in eastern France. It is located between Paris and Geneva.Beaune is one of the key wine centers in France and the annual wine auction of the Hospices de Beaune is the primary wine auction in France...
in dense holiday traffic during rainfall. The collision and subsequent fire killed 53 people, among which 46 were children. After this crash, regulation was enforced to prohibit the travel of groups of children during this part of the year.
See also
- List of road accidents
- Beaune road accident on French Wikipedia