“I don’t have confidence in these figures”: FO continues to demand more resources for public transport in Montpellier

Le syndicat FO réclame davantage de moyens dans les transports en commun. Midi Libre – JEAN-MICHEL MART

The FO union reacts to the success of free public transport in Montpellier.

"This’s the scam !&quot Do not talk to the FO union representative, the majority at TAM, about the increase in public transport use since it became free. For Laurent Murcia, the figures are not comparable for several reasons. First, the fraud rate. The union estimates that fraudsters represented 80% of users per year before the introduction of free access. "We cannot compare attendance on different bases, namely ticketing versus cells installed at bus and tram entrances. Not to mention the increase in population within the metropolis. And to recall that the repeated Yellow Vest demonstrations in 2019 had prevented the circulation of public transport.

Lack of drivers and rolling stock

For him the problem lies elsewhere. "I’alert each CSE about the lack of resources: both among drivers and on buses and trams. It’s already complicated but it will be even more complicated at the start of the school year."He cites the example of bus line 15: the reinforcements did not make it possible to absorb the delays or the passenger load. He also denounces the overcrowding of tram lines 1 and 3. "We're leaving people at the dock !"

"I don’have confidence in their numbers"

The trade unionist does not support the 26% drop in incivility. "I don’have no confidence in their figures . We haven't had an assessment for two years. At the moment, we are experiencing a lot of stones. We must re-establish social ties because violence continues to rise." He further deplores that the Metropolitan Transport Police is not yet fully staffed. "With half the planned workforce at present, agents can only work office hours. However, it was planned that they would also intervene in the evening." The agents are all expected to take office by the end of the year.

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