Place Carpeaux

Built in the 1980s, the Place Carpeaux is going to get a second youth. Paris La Défense will renovate the square in three phases. The first phase of work will be completed in early 2023.

Place Carpeaux in 2021, before the renovation of the public spaces © Air Images

Making the square a destination and a more pleasant place

At present, Place Carpeaux is perceived as a place of transit, where one finds Caesar's "Thumb" and cabs. It is a place of passage, of entry and exit from the Parvis, but does not have an affirmed identity as a living square, a place of pleasure. Paris La Défense has decided to make this square a destination. The reconfiguration of the spaces will allow for the creation of a revitalized, active place and improve the cohabitation of the different uses of the square.

The public spaces of the Place Carpeaux are the public spaces located :

1. On the slab, including part of the Esplanade Nord, around the CNIT and up to the Faubourg de l'Arche district.
2. On the street level (route de la Demi-Lune, rue de Valmy and rue Carpeaux mainly, limited to the north by the Coupole sector, including the Division Leclerc intersection.
   In this sector are located the Transilien station, the T2 station, the EOLE and Cœur Transport exits.

Following the consultation held in 2016, Place Carpeaux will be the subject of an urban transformation by 2021, carried out and financed by Paris La Défense in order to accompany the evolution of uses and atmospheres generated by the arrival of the Sisters Towers and the new station La Défense France Arche on the RER E line.

The square will be levelled and new unified pavements will be laid to make it easier to access and thus facilitate the movement of people with reduced mobility while improving the comfort of use for all. Pedestrian and vehicle flows will also be separated to improve safety.
The project will propose plantings arranged in archipelagos scattered over the square, offering a new landscape while establishing free and direct pathways. Seats forming small lounges will punctuate the multiple pedestrian routes. Stainless steel furniture will soberly accompany the plant islands. The lighting will be completely reconfigured to redefine the space and create new atmospheres according to the uses.

As the gateway to the business district, it is intended to become a place of life and entertainment that will allow everyone to enjoy the new islands of vegetation, welcoming street furniture and future relaxation areas at the bottom of the towers and near the shops.

The challenges of the project

• Reconfiguring the spaces to improve the cohabitation of the different modes of travel
• Reconfigure the spaces to improve the cohabitation of the different modes of transportation
• Treat the accessibility of the square for people with disabilities
• Reinforce the presence of vegetation
• Improve comfort: benches, bicycle racks, clear pathways and climatic comfort
• Enrich the uses, including on weekends
• Work on the quality of the facilities: legibility, surfaces, steps, lighting

In summary, the objective is to limit the place of the automobile and to accentuate the presence of vegetation, to replace the ground coverings, to import a more complete landscape composition and to review the traffic flows.

Project Schedule

The development work will be completed in phases.

• The first phase corresponds to the development of the slab around the future exit of the EOLE La Défense Grande Arche station on the Parvis de la Défense. Work began in January 2022 and will be completed in early 2023.
• The second phase corresponds to the developments on the slab between the Cnit and the Les Collines de l'Arche building. The work will take place between 2023 and 2025.
• The third phase corresponds to the development of the surroundings of the future Sisters Towers on the slab and at the level of the route de la demi-lune and the rue de Valmy, starting in 2026.

The first phase of this development will begin in early 2022, in the area around the "crater", at the level of the RER/Metro/Tram access to Coeur Transport. The primary objective of the work in this area will be to create a level circulation path linking Le Parvis to Place Carpeaux, respecting the PMR regulations and integrating the existing exit of the RER A "Grande Arche de La Défense" and the future exit of the EOLE project, which will be delivered in 2022.

Location of the first area to be developed at the corner of the CNIT, which will connect the Parvis and the Place Carpeaux by correcting the current differences in levels.

In early 2022, the first work will consist of creating a level circulation between the Parvis and Place Carpeaux, opening up "the crater" on one side © RichezAssociés

Users consulted in 2016

To design this urban renewal project, the developer organized a public consultation in 2016, with the aim of gathering diagnoses as well as the uses of the various publics. The opinions and comments collected helped the project designers create the future development of the square based on the expectations of employees and residents.

Several positive elements were noted by the users, such as easy access to transportation, the presence of visible and necessary cabs, ramps that offer fluidity of passage, distant perspectives that make it possible to find one's way, or even soft pathways made possible by the ramps and the presence of the Thumb.

Among the more negative observations made by the public, the following points stand out and will be addressed within the framework of the project: few green spaces, too mineral a space, degraded materials that are not very comfortable for walking, insufficient lighting, slippery ground, a passage space that lacks conviviality, lack of activity in the square, lack of conviviality, no place to sit.

The square will thus become one of the gateways to the business district from Courbevoie. This redevelopment should create a more comfortable, functional and animated public space.

Did you know?

The square is named after Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux, born on May 11, 1827 in Valenciennes and died on October 12, 1875 in Courbevoie. He was a French sculptor, painter and draftsman.