• The Prime Minister has decided to almost double the initial envelope provided for public transport in metropolitan areas.

  • Public transport would show a loss of around 500 million euros in large cities outside Ile-de-France compared to 2019.

A large envelope for the development of public transport in provincial communities. This is what Prime Minister Jean Castex announced, who was in Nantes this Friday for the days of the urban France association, which brings together the large metropolises. "I have decided that we would add an additional 400 million euros to this call for projects for the benefit of mobility", declared the Prime Minister at the end of this gathering of elected officials.

As part of the recovery plan, the fourth call for projects underway in favor of public transport on own site and multimodal transport hubs had been allocated an initial envelope of 450 million euros, extended to 500 million euros. by the Senate.

In this, the government almost accedes to the requests of elected officials, the Group of transport organizing authorities (Gart) and the report of the former deputy mayor of Caen (PS) Philippe Duron on the financing of public transport, which recommended in July to double the envelope.

Fall in tariff revenue

"We asked for 450 million, the Prime Minister has just announced 400 million, we must welcome this gesture", reacted Johanna Rolland, mayor (PS) of Nantes and president of urban France, recalling "the essential issue of daily mobility ". According to urban France, fare revenues (ticket sales) collapsed by 35% in 2020 and tax revenues (i.e. the mobility payment paid by companies) fell by 5%, causing a total a loss of around 500 million euros in large cities outside Ile-de-France compared to 2019. “Our balances have been severely shaken and damaged,” lamented Jean-Luc Moudenc, mayor (LR) of Toulouse and vice-president of urban France.

In mid-May, the Prime Minister announced that he would further open the system of repayable advances to finance the public transport networks affected by the crisis, a first step for the communities which however demanded net compensation. Johanna Rolland then insisted on the "unfair situation" between Ile-de-France Mobilités, the organizing authority for transport in the capital region which received in 2020 approximately 700 million euros to compensate for the tax losses linked to the crisis, "and the rest of the country".

The cities have already requested 574 million euros in reimbursable advances, said Jean Castex on Friday in Nantes.

Earlier in the morning in Cenon (Gironde), during the Assises of small towns in France, the head of government recalled the increase of 350 million in the envelope of Reclamation and Ecological Transition Contracts (CRTE) aimed in particular at revitalize the centers of small and medium-sized towns, a measure announced Tuesday by Emmanuel Macron.

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