Traffic issues outside Paul Ricard circuit dampen F1's return to France

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19:15, 22 Jun 2018

byJake Williams-Smith

Formula One's return to France might have gone smoothly on-track but outside the gates, fans were left frustrated as they were stuck in traffic for hours on end with some missing the morning sessions and others giving up entirely.

The FIA made a statement part-way through free practice two that addressed concerns about traffic issues going in and out of the circuit.

“Race fans came out in strong numbers for the first day of the Formula 1 Grand Prix de France.

“Traffic was particularly dense between 10am and 1pm.

“To address the situation, the authorities and the event organisers have taken the following decision: to open all available car parks simultaneously (25,000 spaces) and to temporarily double the lanes of traffic in the immediate vicinity of Circuit Paul Ricard.

Pos.	Driver	Team	Points
1	Kimi Antonelli Kimi Antonelli	MercedesMER	72
2	George Russell George Russell	MercedesMER	63
3	Charles Leclerc Charles Leclerc	FerrariFER	49
4	Lewis Hamilton Lewis Hamilton	FerrariFER	41
5	Lando Norris Lando Norris	McLarenMCL	25
6	Oscar Piastri Oscar Piastri	McLarenMCL	21
7	Oliver Bearman Oliver Bearman	HaasHAA	17
8	Pierre Gasly Pierre Gasly	AlpineALP	15
9	Max Verstappen Max Verstappen	Red Bull RacingRBR	12
10	Liam Lawson Liam Lawson	Racing BullsRCB	10
11	Arvid Lindblad Arvid Lindblad	Racing BullsRCB	4
12	Isack Hadjar Isack Hadjar	Red Bull RacingRBR	4
13	Gabriel Bortoleto Gabriel Bortoleto	AudiAUD	2
14	Carlos Sainz Carlos Sainz	WilliamsWIL	2
15	Esteban Ocon Esteban Ocon	HaasHAA	1
16	Franco Colapinto Franco Colapinto	AlpineALP	1
17	Nico Hulkenberg Nico Hulkenberg	AudiAUD	0
18	Alexander Albon Alexander Albon	WilliamsWIL	0
19	Valtteri Bottas Valtteri Bottas	CadillacCAD	0
20	Sergio Perez Sergio Perez	CadillacCAD	0
21	Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso	Aston MartinAST	0
22	Lance Stroll Lance Stroll	Aston MartinAST	0

Traffic issues outside Paul Ricard circuit dampen F1's return to France

byJake Williams-Smith

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