France Today: 7 November 2026

Saturday brings another day of protest marches in Paris and Lyon, with disruption on public transport and a large police presence. Elsewhere, a fire-hit Paris market fights to survive, Nice prepares for Sunday’s marathon, and the minimum wage is back on the agenda.

City news

Road closures for Sunday’s Nice-Cannes marathon

Drivers in Nice and along the coast should plan ahead: the Alpes-Maritimes Nice-Cannes marathon takes place on Sunday 8 November 2026, and several roads across the department will be closed to traffic while the runners pass. Areas affected include the Promenade des Anglais, the Croisette and the seafront. France 3 has listed the sectors to avoid and the planned diversions.

Source: France 3 Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur

Enfants Rouges traders move onto the pavement after fire

In Paris, four of the 18 traders from the fire-damaged Marché des Enfants Rouges, the city’s historic covered market, have been running makeshift stalls on the roadway since Tuesday, in difficult conditions. Restoring the market will take several years. Until then, the traders are asking for a suitable space so they can keep their customers and save their businesses.

Source: France 3 Paris Île-de-France

Lyon’s night trail climbs more than 2,400 steps

In Lyon, the Lyon Urban Trail by Night is known for its many steps and its route up the city’s best-known staircases, with more than 2,400 steps in all. Runners can choose a timed 30-kilometre course, which also passes through Sainte-Foy-lès-Lyon and Oullins, or a timed 20-kilometre course.

Source: Lyon Capitale

Strikes, protests and transport disruption

Paris march from République to Nation

The intersyndicale, the joint front of France’s main trade unions, has called a new day of protest in Paris on Saturday 7 November. Marchers will walk from place de la République to place de la Nation, the same route as last Thursday. Many metro and RER lines are disrupted and some stations are closed.

Source: France 3 Paris Île-de-France

Yellow Vests plan banned rally alongside union protests

Unions and student groups are marching again on Saturday. Separately, the Yellow Vests (gilets jaunes) movement plans a rally in central Paris even though the authorities have banned it, and it is calling for “mass disobedience”. Anyone in central Paris today should expect more than one protest.

Source: The Local France

Operating theatre nurses at Paris hospitals call open-ended strike

In Paris, the union Sud Santé has filed notice of an open-ended strike by operating theatre nurses at the AP-HP, the city’s public hospital group, starting on Thursday 12 November. The nurses point to staff shortages, heavy workloads and low pay, and say they have reached “an unprecedented level of suffering and fatigue”.

Source: France 3 Paris Île-de-France

Heavy security for Lyon protest

In Lyon, several calls to protest on Saturday have spread on social media, and large numbers of police will be on the streets. The threat level is described as “still high” and the security operation as “powerful”.

Source: France 3 Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes

Marseille students push for a “blank semester”

In Marseille, after protests by school and university students that began in September 2026, students at Aix-Marseille Université (AMU) are asking for a “semestre blanc avec un 10 améliorable”. This would be a semester with a guaranteed pass mark of 10 out of 20, which students could still improve on. The university’s leadership has refused for now, and France 3 asked a lawyer whether the idea would be legal.

Source: France 3 Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur

Cost of living

New TGV M enters service

After a wait of two and a half years, the new TGV M, built by Alstom for SNCF, made its first passenger journey between Paris and Marseille on Friday 6 November. For regular rail users, the open question is whether the new train will push ticket prices up and what changes it brings on board.

Source: franceinfo Économie

Minimum wage rise back on the table

A few days before a social conference at Matignon, the Prime Minister’s office, the Minister of Labour said it was “important” to raise the SMIC, France’s minimum wage. Last year’s increase applied to two million people, so any rise would directly affect a large share of workers.

Source: franceinfo Économie

What it means for foreign residents

• If you are travelling in Paris today, check metro and RER service before you leave, as lines are disrupted and some stations are closed along the République to Nation route (France 3 Paris Île-de-France).
• If you have an operation planned at an AP-HP hospital, keep an eye on the strike by operating theatre nurses called by Sud Santé (France 3 Paris Île-de-France).
• Drivers on the Riviera should look at the closures and diversions before setting off on marathon day (France 3 Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur).
• Students at Aix-Marseille Université should follow official university announcements on how this semester will be assessed (France 3 Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur).

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