New tramway: the northern entrance to Caen, the big forgotten part of the extension project
Through Maxence Gorrègues
Published on
The extension of the tram up to the Bijude was already in the boxes when the tramway was fitted out in Caen (Calvados) in 2002. The subject returned to the table when, at the start of the 2010s, the reflection on the complete renovation of the network was launched. But again, it was not retained by the political decision-makers in charge of the file.
And will be rebel at the end of 2021. The extension to La Bijude, along the Departmental Route 7, is excluded from the major current project, which provides for additional lines to link the center of Caen to the districts of Beaulieu and Chemin Green in particular.
Before 2040?
“The extension project towards La Bijude will not be part of this community mandate”, confirms Nicolas Joyau, vice-president within the Urban Community of Caen la mer, in charge of mobility. In other words, if this extension has to be developed one day, it will not be until the 2030s …
This choice makes people cringe. For some users first. “This northern entrance to Caen is regularly saturated, deplores Mathieu, who lives in Douvres-la-Délivrande and who works in the center of Caen. Park your car at La Bijude and get off by tram, it would be good to relieve congestion in the north ”.
Deemed to be a priority by some
This argument finds a favorable echo on the side of the mayor of Épron, a town crossed by the RD7. “This extension must be agreed as a priority,” proclaims Franck Guéguéniat. At one point or another, we will have to open up the northern part of the city with large resources that come out of DIY as we have been doing for several years. He recalls that 1,200 homes have started to emerge in his town, with the last deliveries scheduled for 2035, as well as hundreds of others north of Caen.
“And then when you come from the northern municipalities, and I count Courseulles in it, there are not 36 accesses to get to Caen”, especially as the “penetrante Moulin”, the project which plans to connect the traffic circle. Point de la Bijude up to Boulevard Juin at the level of the Primary Health Insurance Fund, is at a standstill.
“A land reserve for a relay car park”
“There is a land reserve to create a park and ride in a field that plays the roundabout of Bijude. Ambitious soybeans. It will be much better than the current terminal, enclosed in front of the Crous, and where it is very complicated for the inhabitants of the north of Caen, to park. “
This extension would involve the installation of rails, straight or almost, over 1.8 kilometers, to link the Bijude and the current terminus. At a rate of 20 million euros per kilometer, it must finance an envelope of around 36 million euros, or about 14% of the estimated budget for the extension as it is currently envisaged.
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