Public transport companies advocate “a supply shock” to boost assistance, in the name of purchasing power and the environment, which must go through greater state support, their federation, UTP, said Tuesday.
“Our first priority is the supply shock”, with more frequent trains, subways, trams and buses and better service to the territory, stressed Marie-Ange Debon, president of the Union of Public and Railway Transport (UTP), also head of the Keolis company (SNCF group).
“We are not magicians, we have to find resources. (…) We believe that there also has to be a financing shock, to withstand this supply shock, ”he added in front of journalists.
“We are not magicians”
“Our collective goal is to move towards more public transport of course, and also more carpooling and shared media,” he said. The adversary is “autosolismo”, that is, motorists alone in their car.
“Public transport must be a priority for the five-year period,” said Ms. Debón. Virtuous for the environment, they are cheap, but they can only be an alternative to the car if there is enough supply, according to the UTP.
As for the draft state budget for 2023, whose examination begins in Parliament, “it must be subject to reinforcement and consolidation,” the official estimated. The text currently provides 9,700 million euros for mobility.
The UTP considers it essential to maintain the payment for mobility (VM), a payroll tax for companies with more than 11 employees that normally finances 45% of public transport in France.
In the face of the current crisis, it calls for a mechanism that compensates for the increase in electricity prices for the large operators of general interest that participate in decarbonisation and would like greater support for rail freight transport, which is diminished by inflation.
4,000 positions still unfilled
The UTP also requests 500 million euros per year for the development of urban transport networks and “at least 6,000 million euros per year in the five-year period” for the entire railway network.
Finally, the professional organization asks for more support for the purchase of low-emission buses.
Concerning the frequency of réseaux, “on this pas complètement revenu au level de 2019” before the health crisis, Mme Debon noted, avec une frequentation revenant à un level proche de la normale in province more remaining than 80% in Ile -from France.
One current concern is the hiring of bus drivers. There are currently 4,000 vacancies, according to the UTP.
Source: BFM TV
