In her cabin, alone at the helm, Adeline scans the darkness of the tunnel. The Lyon underground stretches as far as the eye can see. Yet she knows the smallest details. An approaching turn, a discreet light… “I automatically know where I am. It’s an environment that I completely appropriated, ”smiles the 28-year-old young woman. For almost four and a half years, Adeline has been a metro driver, now driving only line A. Her “favorite”.
A cup placed to his right to quench his thirst if needed, sometimes a little music “in the background”, a mini fan or the window open to get “a little air” on hot days, a few ” little checks” and the day can begin. Let’s go for a seven-hour dive partly in the dark, a few meters underground… or underwater. So don’t be claustrophobic, she laughs. “It’s true that I’m often asked the question or that people point it out to me, but that doesn’t bother me. Some of my colleagues stopped the training because, after a while, it made them anxious. Me no. »
magic nights
“I couldn’t work at height,” she continues, laughing. There, I am very well. “Especially when she “likes to tickle the index” to allow herself a burst of speed in a straight line: 80 km/hour maximum. “Yes, it’s going fast, casually. But when I approach the stations, I slow down and switch back to manual driving mode. »
The moments she treasures the most? “The nights,” replies Adeline without hesitation. For her, “starting work at 6 p.m. is a luxury”. The atmosphere is different. “On game nights, there is no need to follow the results. I know if Lyon won or not. In case of victory, it sings, it also jumps in the oars, ”she underlines, all amused. “Yes, we feel the load so we have to be more vigilant at that time. »
A hello, a hello… delicate attentions
Isolated in her cabin, the young woman reveals that she has, however, regular interactions with passengers. “The faithful recognize me, they come to greet me with a small gesture or a smile through the window. There are also the children who say hello, ”she says, touched by these delicate attentions. “It shows that they are paying attention, that they noticed that someone was in the cabin, she continues. During the confinement, people came to thank us for continuing the service. It is heartwarming. »
And sometimes, contact with travelers lasts much longer than expected. “I experienced two evacuations. Each time, at the end of the service. The first was in 2021. The metro broke down. I had to get people out through the tunnel, getting them up the ladder. There was a lady with heels, I felt sorry for her, ”says the driver. “We may be prepared in training, in practice, it’s different. The first time is always impressive. You have to know how to relax the atmosphere a little while reassuring the most anxious. But the young people, they had fun. They filmed themselves for social networks. They seemed to be having the best activity of their life, she observes with a smile. And when I came back from work to tell my colleagues about this “baptism”, one of them replied: “Oh, this is my twenty-ninth time!” »
Today, is she proud of her job? “Yes, yes, yes,” replies the young woman, beaming. “Every time someone asks me what profession I have, whether it’s during a meeting at the bank or at a party, people are amazed and fascinated. They ask me lots of questions, especially since I started quite young. So yes, I am very proud of it, ”she concludes.