The Metropolis and the Community of Communes Caux-Austreberthe agree to strengthen daily mobility
The Agreement signed between the Rouen Normandy Metropolis and the Community of Communes Caux-Austreber marks a unique agreement in the region in favor of daily mobility. A new carpooling service scheduled for 2022.
On July 13, Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol, President of the Rouen Normandie Metropolis, and Christophe Bouillon, President of the Community of Communes Caux-Austreber signed an agreement in Barentin focused on mobility issues. For Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol, “ the Entente is a unique agreement in the region around a subject that concerns fellow citizens of the same living area: mobility. How do I move every day? That’s the point! The next few years should allow us to achieve very concrete progress”. An associated meeting was held on Wednesday morning, around the two Presidents, the services and the elected officials of the two Establishments. Specific commitments have been recorded, particularly in the field of carpooling. Christophe Bouillon also specifies that “This agreement is a tremendous project accelerator. We have strong expectations for the creation of a bus with a high level of service and the development of a new station in order to be able to reduce the number of cars on the road. “.
Territory logic
The territories of the Rouen Normandie Metropolis and the Community of Communes Caux-Austreberthe are bordering and are part of the same urban area. The territory of the Community of communes Caux-Austreberthe (25,183 inhabitants) captures in particular significant commuting flows from the Metropolis and 51% of the assets of the Community of communes work on the territory of the Metropolis. Whether for professional, family, economic, commercial or leisure reasons, the inhabitants move daily between the two territories and half of the trips of residents of the Community of Communes to the heart of the Metropolis are commuting flows (work and studies).
Today, travel between these territories is mainly done by car (74% of the modal share of commuter traffic between the CCCA and the heart of the Rouen Normandy metropolis), which leads to traffic and increased air pollution. It is noted in particular a decline in attendance at the stations of the Community of Communes since 2015 and a strong use of the car for commuting flows from the Community of Communes to the Metropolis, clearly raising the question of the challenge of relieving congestion in the ‘A 150. The two Establishments, if they do not have all the levers to improve this situation, which depend on part of the SNCF, the State and the Region are determined to obtain tangible progress.
The Agreement provides for joint participation by the Métropole and the launch of a study aimed at creating a multimodal exchange hub and a single station between Barentin and Pavilly. Although the local authorities have deliberated and approved their co-financing, it is clear that this study carried out by the SNCF is falling back in its schedule (2nd quarter specifications, 3rd quarter study for a period of 15 months), while the development of rail, underused today, represents a handy, affordable solution to reduce automobile flows between Rouen and Barentin.
Christophe Bouillon and Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol as solemn respondents to the responsibility of the SNCF and the Region for making this project a priority and giving it an exemplary value with the objective of short-term achievement. The acceleration of the timetable, the construction of a dynamic and sustained comitology to strengthen it are essential.
The Agreement also provides for the development of a study, carried out by CEREMA, aimed at developing an experiment to take one of the two routes from the A 150, reserving it for collective use. (Public transport, carpooling, etc.), in accordance with the Climate and Resilience Law of August 2021, which encourages these experiments on motorways and national roads serving ZFE-m, with constant infrastructure. The study aims to reserve the left lane with the removal of the hard shoulder which becomes the right lane. It will be completed this fall and should then materialize with a first experiment. At the same time, the two Establishments are reiterating their interest in the development of a High Service Level Bus. They propose to initiate studies themselves on the costing of this new service, by requesting co-financing by the State. They also ask that the Community of Municipalities be associated with all the steering committees related to the strengthening of these infrastructures.
A new carpooling service in 2022
According to a recent study, the Rouen Normandy metropolis is first in the ranking of French cities that practice carpooling the most. Since the development of the partnership with the Klaxit application and the payment by the Metropolis of carpoolers, 72,621 journeys have been made1, including nearly 27,000 on journeys dependent on other EPCIs. In Caux-Austreberthe, 1,872 journeys have already been measured, at a cost borne by the metropolis of €5,616. The two Establishments have agreed to strengthen communication on the territory of the community of municipalities, with companies and the general public (stand communication kit, etc.). They have also decided to launch from the start of the 2022 academic year a new Covoit’Ici line (hybrid carpooling/hitchhiking system), reserved for commuter workers, like the one developed since April between Metropolitan France and Seine-Eure conurbation. 910 active people per day live in Barentin and work in Rouen, they represent 250 drivers every day between 7 and 8 am. This line, which will offer compensation to the driver and free and guaranteed carpooling, will be made for them. The Métropole will make the first investments necessary for the ramp-up of this new service.
Delivery of the Duclair – Villers-Écalles greenway at the end of 2023
Finally, the elected officials examined the progress of the greenway depending on the two territories between Duclair and Villers-Écalles, in the extension of the greenway Le Trait-Yainville-Duclair. the signing of the Convention, the first exchanges and studies since have taken place. The end of the design studies is scheduled for the end of 2022/beginning of 2023 for delivery in the last quarter of 2023. The project relating to a 5.6 km stretch for the Métropole and 400 m for the Community of Communes will be supported by the Métropole on behalf of Caux-Austreberthe on its part.
The elected officials agreed to a new meeting in the fall for a progress report on these various projects.