DHAKA: Thousands of trucks blocked motorways across France on Saturday in protest at the government’s controversial plans for a tax on heavy vehicles, causing hours of delays.

Police estimated 2,000 trucks while organisers said 4,000 lined motorways, driving slowly and clogging up traffic into various French cities including Paris, Strasbourg, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Marseille, Lyon and Lille.

The road transport federation OTRE organised the protest and instructed truck drivers to leave one lane free for cars, but to block ‘foreign trucks’.

‘We do not want our competitors to carry on driving while we have stopped,’ OTRE leader Aline Mesples told media, reports The Straits Times.

BDST: 1623 HRS, NOV 17, 2013
RoR/BSK