For those who have already tried to go from one end of the capital to the other with a stroller, or even for those who are handicapped by their old age or use a wheelchair, one thing is clear: the Paris metro is absolutely not suitable.
According to figures from Ile-de-France Mobilités (IDFM), which organizes transport in the region, 9% of the metro is currently accessible. It’s actually just line 14, as stated on the RATP website (and again, it’s not easy, as our partner Brut’s video below shows).
Four years ago, only 3% of stations were wheelchair accessible….
Risks of collapses
But why is it so difficult to make the metro accessible? Studies “demonstrate” that on the old metro lines – some are more than 100 years old – “if we tried to widen the corridors or put in elevators, there is a risk of collapse, technical impossibilities which are strong “, explained the vice-president of IDFM, Grégoire de Lasteyrie, during a press briefing organized by the organizing committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Some stations are also classified as Historic Monuments.
There is also the issue of cost. “These are works that would take 7 to 10 years per line”, with “an extremely high cost”, added this regional elected official, to explain the very low accessibility of the Paris metro.
An improvement for the Olympics
But the situation should improve a little with the approach of the Olympic Games. The extension of lines 4, 11 and 14 and therefore the new accessible stations will increase the accessibility rate of the metro to 14%. 32 metro stations “will be accessible in 2024”, as well as “28 RER stations”, specified the vice-president of IDFM. 268 SNCF and metro stations should finally be in Ile-de-France in 2024.
According to APF France Handicap, 350,000 people with disabilities are expected to attend the 2024 Summer Games.