Traversée de Paris - A Museum on Wheels

PARIS, 23 January, 2025 - La Traversée de Paris is a film by Claude Autant Lara released in 1956. Bourvil, de Funès and Gabin make this comedy a masterpiece, describing with humour the dark hours of the Occupation when Paris was hungry... Although the film caused a scandal on its release (dealing with the black market and denunciations 10 years after the war ended was daring), it was a success and its title is still remembered.

Having got into the habit of meeting informally on the esplanade of the Château de Vincennes every Sunday since November 1986, the Vincennes en anciennes club decided in 2000 to take the plunge and organise its fist dynamic event. Thus the Traversée de Paris en anciennes was born.  The Vincennes en anciennes association now has more than 1,200 members, equivalent to around 3,000 vehicles.

With its success, the Traversée de Paris has included a summer version since 2007.
What appears simple at first glance is in reality a very complexe piece of organisation, and we mustn't imagine that it's a quiet days because of its long history.
Each edition requires almost the same investment: 

• Choosing a theme
• Adapting a route to the theme
• Submit the proposed route to the Préfecture de Paris
• Wait for approval/validation from the Prefecture
• Print the route books
• Print Rally Plaques
• Gather a team to prepare a thousand bags with road book plates and goodies
• Be on site in the middle of the night to erect barriers, banners and tents
• Welcome the first participants at 07:00 in the morning.
• Direct participants into 3 lanes 
• Check registrations and hand over bags with goodies and road books.

All this requires no fewer than 80 volunteers on the day to ensure that everything runs smoothly and that the participants enjoy themselves.

Another point to the organisation's credit: the Depann 2000 partnership. A classic vehicle can suffer a breakdown, so everything is in place just in case...

From 07:00 onwards, we witnessed the steady flow of participants. They pass under the AXA arch set up on the square in front of the Château de Vincennes, collect their bag after checking their registration and off they go!

In Paris, nearly a thousand vehicles were on the move, whether by car (570), motorbike (110), bike (26 brave ones), tractor (22!) or as passengers in one of the buses chartered by AMTUIR. This year, the tractors had the pleasure of receiving a blessing in front of the Sacré Coeur, the highest church in Paris. Traditionally, participants in the Traversée stop off in front of the Invalides and on the Place de la Concorde to chat, take photos and admire the other vehicles. The vehicles on show range from bicycles to the magnificent 750 MV Agusta of ‘Dartagnan’, from 2CVs to Rolls and Ferraris. Passion transcends values and social disparities. Collectors are there to share the same passion - that's the club spirit.
Participants in the Traversée sometimes come from very far away (Luxembourg, Belgium, England, Germany) and the media from all over the world cover this event (China/Japan/India/USA and all of Europe for television!!!).

One thing we've noticed over the years is that more and more Parisians and tourists are looking out for the ‘caravan’ to photograph this museum on wheels. Along the route, hundreds of photographers immortalise the participants, with the monuments in the background as a bonus... Quite simply, it's a breath of fresh air and camaraderie. Like all Asterix albums, the Traversée de Paris ends with a banquet, at the Vincennes racecourse in winter and at the Meudon observatory in summer.

Club Vincennes en Anciennes is the largest multi-make club in France. To date, it has 1,065 members and around 3,000 vehicles. The Club is present at a large number of events, from Chantilly to Reims, including Retromobile Mans Classic and Epoq'Auto Lyon.

It's worth noting in passing that the Reims show, the Montée Historique de Laon, the Lyon Epoq'Auto and the Traversée de Paris are all club successes. Are you in the club spirit? Yes, I am!

Now to the partners. As the saying goes, ‘thank you to those without whom this would not have been possible’. Our main partners are

AXA Passion The company is represented by Jean-Pierre Houdeillé. AXA Passion is the ‘passion’ branch covering classic vehicles, pleasure boating and motorbikes. He was on hand to help fill the bags and provide information to all the collectors with availability, competence and good humour.

ELF's slogan ‘a brand of passion’ is no coincidence. Having shone in competition at the highest level since the 60s, this lubricant specialist now offers classic vehicles lubricants with all the specific characteristics. Lubricants for new vehicles are unsuitable because they are too detergent. ELF has therefore developed a specific range to protect classic vehicles.

 

Patrick Hornstein