2023-08-14 14:08:42
“RAS, everything is fluid”. It is 10:30 a.m. on Monday August 14, and the relief can be read on the faces of the members of the Gare du Nord crisis unit (Paris, Xe). The Minister Delegate for Transport, Clément Beaune, and the President of the SNCF group, Jean-Pierre Farandou, come to take stock of the exceptional system put in place since Saturday on the north of the RER B.
In order to carry out heavy work, the second busiest railway line in Europe is interrupted for three days, including, for the first time, a working day, this Monday. No less than 600 buses and 1,000 drivers are mobilized to provide service to closed stations, a record.
Count at least one hour more
“Of course, it’s August 14, but we still have a lot of traffic. This weekend, we had 125,000 travellers, that’s a lot. This Monday alone, 2,400 bus trips are planned, that’s 50% more than this weekend, ”explains Pascal Geiger, director of operations, who coordinates the SNCF crisis unit.
Usually, on August 14, 200,000 travelers take the northern sections of line B. Problem: the noria of buses and coaches set up can only carry 100,000 people.
Hence the prevention message sent since the spring by the regional prefecture, the SNCF and Île-de-France Mobilités: unless absolutely necessary, it is best to postpone your trips, especially this Monday. And for those who still have to travel, it takes at least an hour more than on a usual day.
“Ah, but you still have to walk 5 minutes to catch the bus? »
These calls have obviously been heard. At the Gare du Nord and at the Stade de France – Saint-Denis (RER D) station, around 8 a.m., the trains are lightly loaded. To get to Aulnay-sous-Bois (Seine-Saint-Denis), dozens of agents in red vests guide the flow of travelers to one of four alternative bus lines.
Along the Avenue des Fruitiers, in Saint-Denis, there are many barriers to guide walkers. “Ah, but you still have to walk 5 minutes to catch the bus? “, groans a resident, a little disoriented.
In the opposite direction, coming from the north, the regulars of the line have adapted. Bernard, a retiree, left Aulnay-sous-Bois by bus. “I think it’s not badly organized. I let myself be taken care of by the SNCF. No problem, ”he said before going through the gate of the Stade-de-France station.
Bertrand carries his double bass with him: “I usually take the B at La Plaine… There, I had to walk about 20 minutes from Aubervilliers to take the D (which takes you to Paris instead of the B)”. The young man does not seem in a bad mood: “I am going to Paris to take the train and go to Nantes for the holidays! »
Omar, he looks less happy. “Where is this the train to go to?” he asks on the RER D platform. This morning he left “two hours early”: “I work in a supermarket in the 19th arrondissement”.
Confused tourists
On the other hand, the information seems to have gone down less well with tourists, many of whom board the B to join or leave Charles-de-Gaulle airport. The signage had to be reviewed in the terminals this weekend and the SNCF reinforced the presence of agents on the platforms of the Gare du Nord.
VIDEO. “It’s the most Parisian of experiences”: tourists, also trapped by the closure of the RER B
After the evening rush hours, from 4 p.m. on Monday, the RER B will resume its normal course from this Tuesday morning public holiday of August 15. This exceptional weekend will have made it possible to advance the modernization work on this essential line for millions of inhabitants. The work carried out aims to create a new terminus near the Stade de France, which should allow trains to turn around quickly in the event of a cut on the line.
This equipment is financed from the budget of CDG Express, the future direct link which must connect the Gare de l’Est to Roissy airport from 2027. A controversial project, called the “train of the rich” by its opponents, such as David Belliard (EELV), the mobility assistant in Paris.
Until tomorrow Monday, part of the @RERB is closed. What the minister does not say is that this closure is also linked to the creation of the CDG Express, this train which will connect Paris to CDG airport reserved exclusively for tourists who will be able to pay 24 euros for the ticket at the… https://t.co/TlZAzRxN3T
— David Belliard (@David_Belliard) August 13, 2023
Present at the Gare du Nord, Clément Beaune reaffirmed his support for this future shuttle, whose work is “interwoven with that of the RER B”. It is a question of better serving “one of the largest airports in Europe”, which will contribute “to the influence and attractiveness” of the Paris region, he added.
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