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Beyond the Olympics, the transportation challenge in Ile-de-France

OBesides the very organization of sporting events, transport, along with security, will be the sector that will partly determine the success of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The capital is preparing to welcome nearly 1 million additional visitors every day from July 26 to August 11, who are invited to take buses, metros and trains to reduce the event’s carbon footprint. But between the promises of the application file submitted in 2015 and the construction of infrastructure nine years later, the gap is significant.

Also Read | Articles are reserved for our subscribers Transport during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris: From the excitement of promises to the shock of reality

It would be tempting to see the glass as half-empty by pointing to what will not be completed, such as the Charles-de-Gaulle-Express, which was supposed to connect Roissy Airport with the Gare de l’Est, or with lines 16 and 17. There is no doubt that the initial ambitions were disproportionate to the timetable set. The desire to integrate all the infrastructure provided for in the state-region planning agreement and the Greater Paris Act into the Olympic project was mission impossible.

No western metropolis has simultaneously undertaken underground works of this magnitude. After ten years of political reshuffles, costs that have spiraled out of control and delivery times for rolling stock have lengthened, the miracle has finally been prevented.

Random regularity

Although the risks were inevitable, the prospect of the Olympic Games made it possible to accelerate and complete part of the infrastructure needed to run the event smoothly. This is the case for line 14, which connects Saint-Denis with Orly. Without the Games’ deadline, this technical feat would undoubtedly not have been possible in time. In the home stretch, the challenge of its full commissioning is significant. But, five months before the opening ceremony, the completion of most of the modernization of the Île-de-France network is within reach.

Also Read | Articles are reserved for our subscribers Paris 2024: Suspense over whether Line 14, the “Lifeline of the Games”, will be fully operational

On the other hand, there is probably more to worry about network activity in both RATP and SNCF. Repeated breakdowns and random regularity of services are already poisoning the daily lives of Ile-de-France residents. The consequences of the Kovid-19 pandemic added to decades of underinvestment, which severely disrupted the sector. During periods of incarceration, loss of income reduced supplies and prevented recruitment. There was very little expectation of a strong resumption of travel, thus catching carriers on the wrong foot.

Furthermore, this chaotic exit from Covid coincides with the potential for the sector to open up to competition. Employees are being asked to work more with longer hours, in the context of understaffing and excessive absenteeism, all with inflation that is eroding purchasing power. Finally, the entry into force of the end of employment status makes the career less attractive.

At RATP, like SNCF, management is trying to overcome this latent social crisis by distributing bonuses and accelerating hiring, in order to get through the Olympics deadline without any problems. What will happen then? Some unions are already talking about a social “third part”. In the fall, work on the aging network will resume, agents will take the collective leave they agreed to postpone and the understaffing will not be fully absorbed. After all, the Olympic period is probably not the hardest time to overcome.

Also Read | “Can I take my bus? » In Paris, the question of transportation during the Olympic Games crystallizes concerns

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