The news just came out a few minutes ago. While the day was supposed to go smoothly on the public transport network in the city, the Police Prefecture has made the decision to close one of the major stations in the capital due to the gathering of protesters. Unfortunately, this station is connected to no less than 5 metro lines and 3 RER lines.
L'ambiance commence à se tendre sur la place de Châtelet à Paris où les forces de l'ordre ont commencé à entrer en action depuis le pont au Change. Des manifestants s'en prennent notamment aux reporters du média d'extrême droite Frontières dont la présence n'est pas souhaitée pic.twitter.com/JK06pHmJLf
— Alexis Bisson (@Alexibisson) September 10, 2025
Bigger disruptions than expected
Your journey on the capital's rails might turn out to be a bit trickier than anticipated. Indeed, earlier this afternoon, the Paris prefecture decided to completely close the Châtelet-Les-Halles station (which includes both Châtelet and Les Halles). This is a preventive measure, part of the national mobilization movement organized today by the collective « Block Everything », which has already gathered over 30,000 demonstrators across France. For now, no transfers are being operated, and the resumption of services remains uncertain.
❌ La gare de Châtelet-les-Halles est non desservie pour le moment dans les deux sens de circulation en raison de mesures de sécurité demandées par la préfecture de police.
— RER B (@RERB) September 10, 2025
ℹ️ Aucune correspondance n'est assurée dans cette gare. #RERB
And for good reason, thousands of demonstrators gathered this Wednesday starting at 1 PM in the namesake square, even launching calls for looting on social media. In response to this threat, it wasn't just the metro stations that became inaccessible, but also the entire Forum des Halles, whether it's the inside or outside shops.
Preparing for what's next
And the impact on the metro might not stop there, as the capital has a number of gathering points: Châtelet, of course, but also République, Place des Fêtes, Gare du Nord, Sorbonne Square, just to name a few. We are therefore not...it's not safe from another prohibition in the next few hours, and returning to the office might be a bit tricky if you're not working remotely.
Lancée depuis la place du Châtelet, la mobilisation déborde désormais largement sur les rues alentour et notamment la rue de Rivoli. Les forces de l'ordre empêchent les manifestants de progresser pic.twitter.com/qBFMLSkhrw
— Alexis Bisson (@Alexibisson) September 10, 2025
This measure, while quite disconcerting for all the Parisians wanting to shop or pass through the largest underground station in the world, isn't much of a surprise. And unfortunately, we’ll probably have to get used to it, since a new strike movement is planned for next week, specifically on Thursday, September 18, and this time it will impact the RATP network much more significantly. A great reason to switch to biking or walking, right?