The Route nationale 11, or RN11, is a trunk road ( nationale) in Southwest

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

between

Poitiers Poitiers is a city on the river Clain in west-central France. It is a commune in France, commune, the capital of the Vienne (department), Vienne department and the historical center of Poitou, Poitou Province. In 2021, it had a population of 9 ...

and

La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...

. It is part of

European route The international E-road network is a numbering system for roads in Europe developed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). The network is numbered from E1 up and its roads cross national borders. It also reaches Central ...

E611.

Reclassification

The road has been downgraded along part of its original route and re-numbered the RD611 between Poitiers and

Niort Niort (; Poitevin: ''Niàu''; ; ) is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department, western France. It is the prefecture of Deux-Sèvres. The population of Niort is 58,707 (2017) and more than 177,000 people live in the urban area. Geography T ...

Route

Poitiers to Niort (0km to 68 Km) (As RD611)

The road begins on the RN10 south west of Poitiers branching west towards the coast. It passes the

Abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

of Fontaine-le-Comte and then by-passes the village of

Lusignan The House of Lusignan ( ; ) was a royal house of French origin, which at various times ruled several principalities in Europe and the Levant, including the kingdoms of Jerusalem, Cyprus, and Armenia, from the 12th through the 15th centuries du ...

. The road enters the ''Foret de Soudan'' and a junction with the A10 autoroute, afterwards passing through the village of Soudan. At Saint-Maucent-l'École the road crosses the river

Sèvre Niortaise The Sèvre Niortaise () is a long river in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Pays de la Loire regions in western France, flowing into the Atlantic Ocean. Its source is in the Deux-Sèvres department, near Sepvret, north of Melle. It flows through t ...

. South of La Crèche the road crosses the

A83 autoroute The A83 autoroute is a motorway in France. It is in the departments of Pays-de-la-Loire and Poitou-Charentes operated by ASF. It connects Nantes to Niort via Fontenay-le-Comte. The motorway has a junction with the A10 at Niort which gives acces ...

becoming a dual-carriageway. The road enters the town of

Niort to
La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...
(68km to 138 km)

The road passes Southwest now designated

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

an Route E601. At Mauze-sur-le-Mignon the road turns north west through ''Foret de Benon'' and over the marshes including the ''Canal de Marane'' and then reaches the port of La Rochelle on the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

coast. The road here has a junction with the RN137 which runs along the coast connecting

Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...

Rochefort Rochefort () may refer to: Places France * Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department ** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard * Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department * Rochefort-du-Gard, in the G ...

, designated the European Route E3. The RD11 becomes the Boulevard Andre Sautel as it heads towards the city centre. The RN735 connects the RN11 to the airport and the '' Pont-Viaduc'', a bridge leading to the ''

Île de Ré Île de Ré (; variously spelled Rhé or Rhéa; Poitevin dialect, Poitevin: ''ile de Rét''; , ) is an island off the Atlantic coast of France near La Rochelle, Charente-Maritime, on the northern side of the Pertuis d'Antioche strait. Its high ...

''.

References

Routes nationales in France {{france-road-stub

Reclassification

Route

Poitiers to Niort (0km to 68 Km) (As RD611)

Niort to La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ... (68km to 138 km)

References

Niort to
La Rochelle La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle'') is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime Departments of France, department. Wi ...
(68km to 138 km)