The Spring of small tourist trains in Argelès-sur-Mer (Pyrénées-Orientales), launched on May 1, promises to be eventful following the unambiguous decision of the Montpellier administrative court. The magistrates purely and simply canceled the public service delegation (DSP), in other words the contract, which linked the Keolis-Pagès group to the town hall of Argelès-sur-Mer for seven years. They claim two major illegalities: the lack of administrative competence of the city in matters of public transport and the non-compliance with the specifications which provided for electric motors for the small trains which transport tourists from the fifty campsites up there. range throughout the city. However, Keolis trains run on diesel.
A reprieve until September 1
The court took care to attach its judgment to a stay until September 1 to protect the high tourist season from chaos. Antoine Parra, the PS mayor of Argelès-sur-Mer, accepted the judgment without communicating the decision to appeal or not in this financially embarrassing case for the city's public accounts. Because in the event of definitive renunciation, heavy compensation would have to be paid to the operator.
For its part, the small Trainbus company, “released” from service by the DSP, is preparing its machines to provide service from May 1st. “We have the right to travel by prefectural decree granted in 2019 for a period of ten years,” explains Benjamin Elallouf, operator of the network since 1986 and who brandishes the decision of the Council of State in his favor.
At the town hall, just like at Keolis, no comments to date. And among the managers of the campsites who supply passengers by the thousands every day, there is no real concern since the “tourist-rail” service is ensured during most of the season.