Jean-Luc Boujon / Credits: ANTOINE BOUREAU / HANS LUCAS / HANS LUCAS VIA AFP 7:22 a.m., April 8, 2024
A mobile public transport brigade has just been created in the Rhône and will operate on buses, trains or stations in municipalities located in rural areas near Lyon. New staff aiming to deal with the increasing attacks and incivility. Europe 1 went to meet them.
Fight against insecurity. Six months ago, the government announced the opening of 239 new gendarmerie brigades for rural areas. These numbers are emerging. Among them, a mobile public transport brigade has just been created in the Rhône. It will operate on buses, trains or stations in municipalities located in rural areas near Lyon. Europe 1 met these new units.
"National Gendarmerie! You can follow me please. We are going to carry out an identity check. Do you have any dangerous objects on you? You will pass your bag to my colleague." This type of control, here at the exit of a metro station, is the daily life of the gendarmes of the brand new mobile public transport brigade. For several days, around fifteen soldiers have been crisscrossing the network, buses, trains and stations to better secure it, explains Colonel Sylvia St Cierge, who commands the Rhône gendarmerie group.
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"The priority is to fight against attacks on people. Violence, attacks, sexist outrages. Theft but also drug consumption, irregular immigration, fraud of all kinds, throughout the transport network ".
An additional presence
A visible presence which is important for Abderrahmane, a regular user of public transport. “I perfectly understand this concern to secure travelers. Sometimes, it’s true that there is incivility. So, that’s reassuring.” The objective is to maintain the same level of security in the city as in the outskirts, and while offenses fell by 28% last year on public transport.