The 53km-long stretch of road has already seen �300-450 million spent on it, according to reports. Work to widen the A680 has also been suspended.

Officials in Haute-Garonne and Tarn originally gave the project the green light in March 2023. But the administrative court of Toulouse ruled last week that the benefits of the project are “very limited� for the region and its inhabitants.

The court annulled authorisations given for the road projects by the prefects of Haute-Garonne and Tarn.

In its ruling, the court said, “The court annuls the authorisations given to these two projects because they are illegal: the A69 and the widening of the A680 only have limited benefits, there is no compelling need to carry them out, and the arguments presented in favour of these projects do not justify any deviation from the objective of conserving natural habitats, wild fauna and flora.�

The French government is now expected to appeal the court’s decision. France’s Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot called for the court not to implement a ban on work immediately so that the project could continue during the appeal process.

Concessionaire ATOSCA won a deal to build and operate the motorway for 55 years in 2022. ATOSCA’s industrial partners are NGE Concessions and Portuguese motorway operator Ascendi, who hold 25% and 15% shares in the consortium respectively. Finance partners Quaero Capital and TIIC each hold 30%.