They are already in service in the conurbations of Metz, Bayonne and Le Mans. Halfway between a tram and a bus, trambuses will arrive in the Breton capital within five years. The choice of this new, 100% electric means of transport was made in 2020 when elected officials were working on the future urban transport plan for the Rennes metropolitan area. “We made this choice rather than extending line B of the metro outside the ring road,” recalls André Crocq, first vice-president.
The investment turns out to be much less expensive, of the order of 200 million euros excluding taxes. And just as efficient in terms of service according to Matthieu Theurier, vice-president in charge of mobility and transport. “It’s a high-level service bus that offers the same advantages as a tram,” he says. Following the feasibility study, four lines were selected. Unveiled this Thursday evening at the metropolitan council, their route will pass through seven municipalities (Rennes, Saint-Grégoire, Vezin-Le-Coquet, Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande, Bruz, Chantepie and Cesson-Sévigné).
The project aims to connect the inner suburbs more quickly to the heart of the city through the development of dedicated lanes and the construction of park and ride facilities at the terminals. “We are counting on frequency with a trambus every six minutes on average during peak hours”, underlines Matthieu Theurier, who is counting on a potential of 90,000 trips per day by 2035. “Equivalent to a third metro line,” he says.
Two lines in 2027, the other two in 2030
While the start of work is scheduled for 2025, the commissioning of the four lines will take three years. The first two, the T1 (between the Leclerc center in Saint-Grégoire and the Saint-Sulpice artisanal zone in Rennes) and the T2 (from Vezin-le-Coquet to Cesson-Sévigné), will thus begin to operate from 2027. For the other two, the T3 (between Saint-Grégoire and Chantepie) and the T4 (from Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande to Bruz), it will however be necessary to wait until 2030. They will eventually replace certain Chronostar lines which circulate currently on the network.
We still do not know the number of trambuses that will run on the 55 kilometers of lines and the model that will be used. The tender procedure will be launched “at the beginning of 2023”, specifies Matthieu Theurier.