The galley will continue for users. Exhausted for months, even years, by the setbacks of the line, the regulars of the RER B may still have to hang on. On Friday May 12, Valérie Pécresse, president of Île-de-France Mobilités announced the termination of the contract which linked the organization of transport to the industrialist Alstom in charge of the renovation of the trains on the line.
This contract, signed in 2017 for an amount of approximately 100 million euros, aimed to renovate 31 MI84 trains in order to equip them with refrigerated ventilation, a video surveillance system and a greater capacity of 312 seats, compared to 216 currently.
21 trains recalled to be “refreshed”
Problem, that they were to be delivered initially from 2019 to 2022, to date, only ten have been completed while six others are still pending at the Reichshoffen plant, sold by Alstom to the manufacturer CAF in 2022, in Bas- Rhine. A “scandal” according to the president of the region who preferred to stop operations, six years after the order. Direction the RATP warehouses for the 21 trains which will only be entitled to a refresh: New windows, new lighting, new seats.
A real blow for the 900,000 to 1 million users of the second busiest line in Europe who were waiting for this operation, which was supposed to improve comfort and extend the life of the trains until the delivery of their successors, the MI20s. , planned from 2025. “It’s hopeless, confides Marc Pélissier, president of the FNAUT Île-de-France, a few touch-ups will not be enough in the face of the severely degraded state of the service. Especially since according to Marc Pélissier, part of the trains must be retouched at the Massy warehouse, currently under construction.
Users fear heatstroke
More than the “cosmetic aspect”, it was the technical improvements that were expected according to the user representative: “With the crowds and the age of the trains, it was above all the ventilation that was a priority. It is already very hot in normal times and things are not going well. » An observation shared by Marie-Hélène Wittersheim, president of the Users’ Committee of the RER B in the Chevreuse Valley (COURB): « They are transformed into a real heat trap in summer. With more and more heat waves, passenger discomfort is increasing, and delays and incidents with it. »
A situation that could deteriorate with the new interconnections to come. “The new lines T10 and T12 create a new flow of passengers, we really needed more places,” adds Marie-Hélène Wittersheim who fears a shortage of rolling stock in the event of a breakdown.
“It’s a clear setback on the issue of public transport, proclaims David Belliard, Île-de-France Mobilités administrator and deputy mayor of Paris in charge of transport, only five months after increasing the Pass Navigo, the line the most important of the network is at an impasse. »
The explanations of the Region and Alstom do not convince
Pierre Baty, also administrator and regional adviser (Presidential Majority), points to the lack of information from the former presidential candidate on the subject: “We only have a few noises from the corridors. Even today, we do not have the ins and outs of this decision, nor the reasons for this failure. »
The region’s transport union turns to Alstom to explain the situation. Already in 2019, Valérie Pécresse had split a fiery letter to Henri Poupart-Lafarge, boss of Alstom, and a visit to the Reichshoffen factory in 2019, to complain about the delays in delivery. Four years later, the reasons put forward by the industrialist still do not convince Grégoire De Lasteyrie, vice-president of Île-de-France Mobilités, contacted by 20 minutes “In addition to operational difficulties, Alstom explained to us that this delay is due to asbestos that they would have found in part of the trains, which they did not know existed. Oars that they themselves manufactured…” An incongruity which would have participated in the decision to stop the costs.
Costs of which we do not yet know the amount since out of the initial 100 million euros, everything “will not be settled in full”, assures Grégoire De Lasteyrie, without being able to give an idea. “We hope that the sum corresponding to the work not provided will be recovered and that compensation will be requested and reinvested in the line”, comments Pierre Baty.
The replacements for RER B, D and E entrusted to… Alstom
A management of the file by the region and by the industrialist which worries elected officials and users since it is Alstom-Bombardier and CAF which are in charge of the supply of the 146 MI20, whose delivery must spread out between the end of 2025 and 2031 at two models per month. And it is the same Alstom which announced at least April that it had obtained a contract worth almost a billion euros to supply 60 RERs for lines D and E. “The choice is not easy, justifies Grégoire De Lasteyrie, the company has a quasi-monopoly on the sector. The chosen one, however, assures “with tweezers” that “for the moment”, no delay has been announced. A statement that does not reassure users.
While waiting for these new trains, Île-de-France Mobilités ensures that fully renovated trains will be preferred at peak times and in hot weather to relieve users, and that those which have only undergone a rapid facelift will be quickly available to allow rotation on the line and prevent incidents. A lesser palliative for Marc Pélissier: “The MI84s and their predecessors, MI79, still in circulation, are aging seriously and are multiplying breakdowns”, exasperated Marc Pélissier.
Also, for Marie-Hélène Wittersheim, the MI20 have an interest in “being on time” because “we won’t last ten years like that”: “the degradation of the network is such that we even see discrimination in hiring for RER B users. In one direction or the other, to the point that many are forced to move. We hope to rediscover the pride of using the RER which was ours thirty years ago. »