Ivory Coast is hosting the 34th edition of the African Cup of Nations (CAN) from January 13 to February 11, 2024. A few weeks before this unmissable event of king sport, a concern remains in the Ivorian economic capital, Abidjan: how to get around during this period?
Of the six stadiums which will host the competition, two are located in Abidjan: the Félix Houphouët Boigny stadium (29,700 thousand seats) in Plateau and the Olympique Alassane Ouattara stadium in Ebimpé (60 thousand seats) in Anyama. Access to these two stages constitutes a real challenge.
The Félix Houphouët Boigny stadium in Plateau
The business center of the Ivorian capital, the commune of Plateau is renowned for its difficult access due to vehicle parking problems. However, it is the municipality in the country which has the largest number of administrative offices with its dizzying skyscrapers. The State has just inaugurated the 5th Alassane Ouattara bridge connecting the Plateau and Cocody in order to streamline road traffic. Better still, a new traffic plan is in force in Greater Abidjan, at the initiative of the Urban Mobility Authority (AMUGA). Several streets and even boulevards are now one-way during rush hours. However, these solutions prove insufficient. Police officers no longer make the task easier. Sometimes they make traffic jams worse than they solve. During rush hours, that is to say in the morning (6 a.m.-9 a.m.) and in the evening (5 p.m.-7 p.m.), we see long lines of vehicles…on the 5th bridge! For football lovers, you will have to walk a few kilometers to reach the Félicia stadium in the Plateau, if you want to avoid traffic jams. What about the Ebimpé stadium?
The Alassane Ouattara Olympic stadium in Ebimpé d’Anyama
Located north of Abidjan, behind the commune of Abobo, the Alassane Ouattara Olympic stadium will be the most difficult to access. Indeed, the work on the Abobo roundabout interchange must not finish before the CAN. The diversion routes are insufficient and sometimes in an advanced state of degradation. The Abidjan Y4 bypass continues. Launched in 2020, in order to improve urban fluidity in and outside the Ivorian economic capital, the work is nearing completion. Several critical points leading to the stadium are not completed.
Distance between the Félix Houphouët Boigny stadium (Plateau) and the Ebimpe stadium (Anyama) / Google Maps
In addition to traffic jams, we also fear the security cordon around the stadiums. The Elephants’ last match at the Ebimpé stadium last November left a bitter taste in the population. A local resident shouted his frustration on social networks: » During the CAN, we residents of N’Dotré from the Arc-en-ciel crossroads to Ebimpé, will not go to work, our children will not go to school as well. Lanes in both directions to access our neighborhoods and homes are closed. If you live in Kobakro, Eugnon, red earth crossroads (Eden bo), Akwaba city, be sure that only walking is your salvation. If you are transported, also be sure that you must wait until the end of the match and wait for the officials to leave N’Dotré to return. Otherwise you park at Arc en Ciel and sleep in the car. The access roads in the neighborhoods are not passable. Security !!!!! Yes, but think of us local residents. We are not subhumans. Review your traffic plans. «
The State of Côte d’Ivoire made many efforts to offer the best CAN ever organized. But this ambition risks being tainted because of traffic jams in Abidjan.
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