Toulouse. But where is the Toulouse RER project? “We hope for the first measures as early as 2024”
By Gabriel Kenedi
Published on
“It’s not yet the big night but it’s an important step, which was necessary”.
President of Let’s rekindle the starthe transpartisan association which has been carrying out the project for years to create a real RER (Réseau Express Régional) service in the Toulouse conurbation, Benoît Lanusse did not hide his joy after the adoption of the vote (admittedly slightly amended) voted unanimously by the elected officials of Toulouse Métropole bearing “on an agreement for concrete progress on the Toulouse RER“.
“A blockage to jump, it’s undeniable”
While until now, Jean-Luc Moudenc had never been favorable to this project, the door now seems to be ajar… at least to discuss the contours of the project. “The RER is a solution that needs to be looked at. So far, it has only been the subject of postures. I can’t wait for this file to get into its technical part, ”said the mayor of Toulouse during the Metropolitan Council, last Thursday.
The adoption of this wish in fact occurs the day after the position taken by Jean-Michel Lattes, president of Tisséo, who for the first time paved the way for Tisséo’s participation in negotiations on the Toulouse RER project. The elected official thus sent a letter to this effect last week to Carole Delga, the president of the Occitanie Region. Through a letter written to the prefect, the president of the Departmental Council Georges Meric also declared himself in favor of this project during the week.
“Toulouse Métropole and Tisséo agreeing to sit around the table was a necessary step to start entering into more concrete discussions. We know that there is still a long way to go, to get to the bottom of things, and find out what are the solutions to improve the offer and find an agreement between the main players. But a blockage to jump, it is undeniable!“, believes Benoît Lanusse, whose association brings together both individual members and municipalities.
“A framework for reflection and work”
While the project seemed to be at a standstill, everything accelerated in a few weeks for the Toulouse RER, even if there is still a long way to go.
Since Rallumons l’étoile has reviewed its copy by proposing to the various communities to adopt a wish which provides a general framework for “a pragmatic and unifying approach on the basis of a RER clocked every half hour from 5 a.m. to midnight with progress in stages by 2029″, the wish has hit home in several municipalities, from Pibrac a Balma Passing by The Union, Cugnaux and therefore, Toulouse Métropole. And other communities should join the movement in the coming weeks, like Sicoval or Muretain Agglo.
For Let’s Rekindle the Star, these constituent advances ” an important victory for the association because it is on the basis of the wish that we presented for an agreement on a first phase of the pragmatic RER that they are the chosen ones. We were right to propose a framework for reflection and work, which now needs to be deepened. There is an opening, now we have to move towards an agreement”take Benoît Lanusse, whose association is identified six potential RER lines to develop.
First measures from 2024?
And to find an agreement, “we really have to go into concrete actions”, argued by Benoît Lanusse. “Jean-Luc Moudenc, Jean-Michel Lattes or Sacha Briand (the vice-president of Toulouse Métropole in charge of finance) have legitimate questions about the cost of this project! “.
Rekindle the star is based on the example of Strasbourg (Bas-Rhin), where an agreement was reached between the Metropolis and the Grand Est Region. “By clocking every half hour on all the lines they can from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays, the offer is improved by 60% during the week, and tripled on Saturday and doubled on Sunday. For an additional cost compared to what is already paid of 14 million euros, shared between the Metropolis and the Region”, deciphers Benoît Lanusse, who proposes to duplicate what has been done in the Bas-Rhin in Toulouse.
“Is such an agreement possible in Toulouse? Can we imagine an agreement between Tisséo and the Region around a shock of offers in 2024? When the ZFE will apply to Crit’air 3 cars , which will impact tens of thousands of residents and businesses – will we be able to put in place a shock of offers negotiated with the Region, Tisséo, the State, the SNCF, the Metropolis. .. Is everyone ready to take a step to make this possible? That’s the question we ask. We are convinced that if the actors go into the details, they will find an agreement”
The Colomiers-Arène line, a “school case”
For the association, it is now a question of moving forward… relying in particular on the TER line which circulates between the Arènes and Colomiers.
“For 30 years, you can use this train with a simple Tisséo ticket. These trains run only on the perimeter of Tisséo and therefore allow the public transport offer, with two dedicated trains, one of which makes four round trips in the morning and afternoon. Or technically, these two trains are capable of running from 5 a.m. to midnight! Let’s look at how much the current service costs, how much a service would cost with trains running from 5 a.m. to midnight, and what impact that would have on ridership. We can start from this case study, then apply it to the other branches of the railway star: towards Sant-Sulpice, towards Muret, or towards Labège”, launches Benoît Lanusse.
“Let’s take this case study, let’s do a very quick test on the Colomiers line to extend it. We recommend in 2024 a Montauban-Castelnaudary which would be clocked on time every day. On the branch, you have to find the not that we can do. Another example: today, no TER arrives early enough in Matabiau to be able to take the first TGV which leaves for Paris at 6:24 a.m. Couldn’t we have a train on each branch that arrives earlier? early, so that people can take the TGV to Paris?”
“We have five months to dig concrete measures”
For the association, time is running out. “The Region is in the process of renegotiating its TER agreement, which should be adopted towards the end of the first quarter of 2023. This is when the service requests for 2024 will appear. Roughly speaking, we have five months to dig concrete measures for 2024find an agreement “.
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