Diesel buses chartered by subcontractors in Montpellier: a very political debate

Passe d’armes politique sur fond de transport en commun. Midi Libre – JEAN-MICHEL MART

The opposition group criticizes diesel buses chartered by subcontractors during the summer. There is no increase from this point of view, responds the Métropole, which has ordered 70 electric buses.

Alenka Doulain and the Mupes group have spoken out “against the increase in summer public service delegations (DSP) for certain bus lines in Montpellier, entrusted to private operators”, in a press release.

“Since the beginning of this mandate, public transport rates have been reduced to an unprecedented level, putting users in difficulty, especially those who depend on public transport for their daily travel, writes the opposition group Mupes. The situation is all the more worrying with the introduction of obsolete buses, running on diesel, by private companies delegated to the public service. Let us recall that under the previous mandate, this type of vehicle had been banned from our city for ecological reasons."

"The entire bus fleet in Tam (130 vehicles) runs on NGV for the urban network, responds the Métropole. Subcontractors for the suburban network or in case of need for the implementation of shuttles on the urban network have diesel and ethanol buses."

"First 12 electric buses in 2025"

"The use of subcontracting has always been practiced. This provides operational agility and makes it possible to offer a qualitative service to passengers in relation to the size of the transport network."

"In the summer, the use of subcontracting ensures continuity of service."

"This summer, the work required the implementation of replacement bus shuttles and therefore the use of subcontracting. However, there is no increase observed compared to previous years."

"The 70 electric buses ordered, which will complete the fleet, are planned to operate as part of the bustram lines. The first 12 electric buses will arrive in early 2025. They could be operated on other lines technically. This bustram project is a collective response to the health and ecological emergency. The vehicles will run on electric motors, which are therefore carbon-free, for transport without CO2 emissions."

"The service has not been reduced. Thus, 12 additional trips have been set up on line 15 during peak hours."