2024-11-04 08:00:00
Un metro for Christmas. This is the end-of-year gift promised by Keolis. The operator of the public transport network Ilévia assures us: traffic will really return to normal in December. For users, it will be the end of six months of hardship. Early departures to arrive on time, search for alternative routes, jostling… “I saw people no longer able to access the platforms and having to wait at the top of the escalators”, testifies Mattéo Ferrux, at the origin of a new user defense association, MobiLille.
It all started this winter with the discovery of asbestos by Keolis employees on the oldest metro trains, the VAL 206, which run on line 2. “We then realized that the company was aware since 2018 but she had said nothing,” underlines Anthony Kowalczuk, secretary general of CFDT Ilévia. It will be necessary to block the Dron workshop at the end of May for the labor inspectorate to carry out analyzes which confirm the presence of asbestos, leading to the withdrawal of 83 trains from service at the end of June.
Stations of the Cross
“The asbestos detected in 2018 concerned parts on which there was no reason to intervene. The maintenance operations during which we found them this year are not part of a usual framework, because they are linked to the extension of the lifespan of old trains,” confides Franck Garçon, general manager of Keolis Lille Métropole. , who adds: “The air and dust analyzes are clear: there are no fibers in the workshops. » Not enough to reassure the technicians, who, suddenly forced to intervene in full suits and under protective tarpaulins, wonder about the risks incurred for years.
As for users, if they are not in contact with the parts concerned (rocker panels, ducts, chassis, brake linings, etc.), they see their movements transform into a procession. The asbestos removal operations and the safety protocols put in place are delaying the recirculation of the trains and drastically slowing down traffic.
At the beginning of September, MobiLille launched a petition to demand compensation from Keolis for subscribers for the summer period. Despite the support of several municipalities, including that of Lille, they only obtain the offer of an annual V’Lille subscription.
“Even when the service was very poor, it never stopped. The best proof, the Olympics and the clearance sale went well, thanks in particular to the strengthening of the bus offer,” Franck Garçon still defends today. Users appeal to the European Metropolis of Lille (MEL), which responds that it does not have the legal means to constrain the operator.
“The MEL is the organizing authority for mobility and it would not have authority? It’s a joke,” fumes Mattéo Ferrux. “The MEL’s posture is inaudible,” says MP Violette Spillebout (EPR). Ilévia is a subsidiary of the SNCF, which is used to negotiating with communities; it was necessary to establish a commercial balance of power. »
Price increase
Users are also concerned about the upcoming increase in the unit ticket (€2.20 compared to €1.80 today) and the monthly subscription (€77.50 compared to €63) planned in the new public service concession. (CSP) awarded to Keolis for the period 2025-2031. A revaluation which anticipates inflation and will no longer change, assures the operator.
Keolis also highlights the reduction in access thresholds for solidarity pricing and free access for those under 18. The increase in prices is supposed to meet the ambitions of the new CSP. Voted during the metropolitan council on October 18, it provides for a 25% increase in the number of trips on the network compared to 2023 and an investment of just over 1.6 billion euros.
On the program from 2026: the extension of metro time slots and tram frequency, an expanded bus network, the renewal of tram trains and the arrival of the first 52 meter trains… with a delay of ten years.
Ordered from Alstom in 2012 for the sum of 610 million euros, in order to transport twice as many passengers on line 1, they were to be put into service in 2016. But the difficulties in operating the new automatic pilot system have stopped delaying their delivery. After launching two mediations with Alstom, the MEL ended up seizing the Lille administrative court. Because the community has a problem: the VAL 206 trainsets of line 2 will be gradually scrapped between 2025 and 2027.
They were to be replaced by those currently in operation on line 1, where the new 52 meter trains were already to run. By appealing to the administrative court, the MEL wanted Alstom to be ordered to supply it with trainsets for line 2; she was rejected. But she got a delivery date: February 2026.
“Will the quality of service be maintained? »
Forced to acquire new trains, the MEL put Alstom and Siemens, historic manufacturer of the Lille automatic metro, into competition. “It is obvious that the delay of the 52-meter has aggravated the metro crisis,” underlines Jacques Richir, Martine Aubry’s deputy for mobility. Main opponent of the president of the MEL, Damien Castelain, Rudy Elegeest (DVG) confirms: “It is to extend the lifespan of the 206 trains that the maintenance work during which asbestos was discovered was launched. »
Like many others, the mayor of Mons-en-Barœul fears that the crisis will continue into 2025: “Between the trains which are reaching the end of their life, those removed for maintenance and the arrival of new trains, the quality of will the service be maintained? »
The letter that Damien Castelain sent on October 24 to the elected representatives of the metropolis to answer their questions is not likely to reassure them. “The MEL did not anticipate. Eight years have passed since Alstom’s first delay, and we knew that the VAL 206s were becoming obsolete. Why didn’t the MEL complete the bulk order proposed by Siemens to cities with VAL metros? » asks ecologist Stéphane Baly.
“As long as we did not have a delivery date for the 52-meter set in stone, we could not establish an acquisition strategy,” replies Sébastien Leprêtre, vice-president of the MEL in charge of transport. In reaction to criticism, the mayor (DVD) of La Madeleine recalls that it is the current majority which is making up for the delay in investments in transport with Extramobile, “a shock of offers without equivalent on the national territory”.
This new name of the transport infrastructure master plan brings together major projects which will provide the network with four new tram and bus lines with a high level of service intended to serve, by 2035, 26 municipalities and 430,000 residents.
Estimated at 2 billion euros during its vote in 2019 (but not reassessed since), it is currently financed by an envelope of 120 million euros promised in 2021 by the Castex government and by a participation of 50 million euros from the Nord department. “A wall of investments awaits us in the next term and we have no phasing,” tackles Stéphane Baly, who does not hesitate to question the competence of the elected representatives of the metropolitan majority.
One of the most polluted metropolises in France
Latest example to date, according to him: the vote, during the last metropolitan council, for the low emissions zone which will be implemented from 1 is January 2025. While the MEL had committed to applying it to vehicles displaying Crit’Air 4, 5 and unclassified stickers, in 2023 the government limited its obligation to only unclassified vehicles – an astonishing choice, while the The Lille metropolis is one of the most polluted in France and has 1,700 premature deaths each year.
What followed, in the first half of 2024, was a consultation of citizens – who voted in majority for the first scenario -, then a regulatory consultation of the municipalities – who preferred the second -, with which the MEL complied. “The municipalities have twisted the arm of the metropolis by putting social issues before health,” regrets Sébastien Leprêtre.
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For environmentalists, the choice of too large a perimeter, including municipalities poorly served by public transport, created the conditions for rejection. According to Rudy Elegeest, “the episode is symptomatic of the functioning of intercommunality: the municipalities are in a counter logic. We must make them understand that the general interest of the MEL is not equal to the sum of individual interests.” One thing is certain: the question of transport is already shaping up to be one of the main subjects of the next municipal and metropolitan elections.
Threat to Serm
Heir to the RER Grand Lille imagined by the former president of the Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, Daniel Percheron, the Hauts-de-France Metropolitan Regional Express Service plans to double the rail offer by 2040 . In addition to better frequency on existing lines, a line will be created between Lille and Hénin-Beaumont, requiring the development of a station between Lille Flandres and Lille Europe. Total cost: between 7 and 9 billion euros.
“Its funding is not stabilized but the State-region plan contract ensures the studies until 2027,” underlines Nicolas Merle. The project director at the Société des Grands Projets is suspended from the financing conference announced for early 2025 by François Durovray. The Minister for Transport has already warned that certain projects should be prioritized to the detriment of others, given budgetary constraints. “We are in full circumspection. And the financial model of the regions does not allow the Serms to be financed,” warns Christophe Coulon, vice-president of Hauts-de-France in charge of transport.
Nicolas Merle does not rule out using European subsidies, as for the Seine-Nord canal, and recalls that the Greater Paris projects had not been called into question, while the deficit was at the time 1 point higher to that of today.
Clear improvement in TER
“We got very angry, but the SNCF reacted. » Vice-president of Hauts-de-France in charge of transport, Christophe Coulon welcomes the normalization of TER traffic, on which cancellations and delays have been halved compared to 2022, a dark year.
The region received 19 high-capacity trains (1,300 seats), ordered in 2018, and will receive 33 more in 2025. They will replace the Picardy trains which will go back to the Nord and Pas-de-Calais to replace the old trains. of lower capacity.
On the other hand, they will not be enough to respond to the increase in TER ridership (195,000 passengers per day), forcing some passengers to travel standing up, or even to stay on the platform. Christophe Coulon is therefore closely observing the compulsory reservation tested in Normandy and the Grand Est.
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IRENA World Energy Transitions Outlook 2024
Ets expresses concerns about the long-term viability of the project due to funding uncertainties. With a growing population and increasing demand for public transportation, the success of this initiative hinges on not just government support but also effective collaboration between municipalities and regional authorities.
The situation surrounding public transport in Lille highlights a broader issue seen in many urban areas: the delicate balance between immediate operational challenges and the future vision for sustainable transport solutions. While current crises, such as the discovery of asbestos in trains, demand urgent attention, long-term infrastructure projects like the Hauts-de-France Metropolitan Regional Express Service require sustained investment and strategic planning.
Additionally, users’ frustrations with inadequate service and proposed fare increases further complicate the landscape. As public sentiment shifts, transport authorities and operators will need to engage more transparently with the community, ensuring that their needs and concerns are addressed appropriately.
All signs indicate that transport will remain a pivotal topic in upcoming municipal and regional elections, with candidates being challenged to present viable, long-term solutions that provide not only immediate relief but also sustainable development for the future of Lille’s public transport network.
