It had temporarily cut off food for RATP and SNCF.

The president of Ile-de-France Mobilités (IDFM) Valérie Pécresse has reached an agreement with the government to compensate for the loss of revenue linked to Covid-19, estimated at 2.6 billion euros this year, has t it announced on Tuesday.

“This is a historic moment.

The transport rescue plan was signed between IDFM and the State, ”Valérie Pécresse told AFP.

“We came close to disaster, so it's a huge relief,” she added, recalling that the negotiations had been bitter with the executive.

“Travelers will not be called upon to pay the price for the Covid crisis, and we will not hold back any of the many investment projects we have in transport.

(…) We will not lower the transport offer either, ”she stressed.

"We signed an agreement to fully compensate for lost revenue," insisted the elected official, also president of the Ile-de-France region.

Repayment over 16 years at zero rate

The State will pay the regional transport authority a subsidy to cover between 80 and 100% the losses of the “mobility payment” (a tax on the payroll of companies with more than 11 people), estimated at 1 billion euros. .

For the bulk of the 1.6 billion euros in lost passenger revenue - i.e. 1.44 billion excluding VAT - and a possible remainder of the shortfall for the "mobility payment", the government will grant a repayable advance of 1.1 to 1.4 billion.

“We got it to be at zero rate, and it will be reimbursed over 16 years and gradually.

We calculated the repayment deadlines according to our forecasts of reconstitution of our revenues, ”detailed Valérie Pécresse.

RATP and SNCF will also cover 10% of these losses under the contract that binds them to IDFM, she added.

This agreement will allow the regional authority to resume payments to the two operators who had been suspended in early July, noted the elected (Free!).

Given the uncertainties on the health front, the State and IDFM have planned "a review clause in 2021 and 2022 if the crisis were to continue," said Valérie Pécresse.

Elected officials denounce the "hallucinating weakness" of state support

The president of IDFM will now work on her own recovery plan, citing as priorities an automatic piloting system for the RER B and D, the continuation of the extension of the RER E to the west, and tram and bus projects in own site.

“We had to save transport before relaunching it.

(…) We are going to have triennial figures for State investments in Ile-de-France which will be very high ”, and higher than the 673 million euros announced Thursday by the government, she has already ad.

"The main thing is that users have nothing to pay but the weakness of the State's support for daily transport remains staggering," denounced Emmanuelle Cosse, from the Ecologists and Progressives group to the IDF regional council.

“Two-thirds of the agreement is a repayable advance… so after 2020 and after the regional ones… it will therefore be necessary to repay between EUR 1.1 and 1.4 billion.

By a price increase?

By a decrease in investments?

Lots of display while it is only occasionally settled, ”added Céline Malaisé, of the Left Front group.

For François Damerval (ecological and social Alternative group), “@vpecresse postpones the management of off-balance sheet debt until after March 2021.

(…) Valérie Pécresse the strategy of permanent sparkle !!!

".

20 Minutes with AFP