People running to catch a crowded subway, then, a few minutes later, empty or almost empty trains.
This is the scenario glimpsed on Saturday, on the first evening of the curfew introduced in Ile-de-France.
A wobbly operation that deserves to be rebalanced, according to users of public transport in the region.
Ile-de-France Mobilités (IDFM), in charge of this organization, first announced last week, through the voice of its president Valérie Pécresse, that the public transport offer (metro, RER, Transilien, bus, tram) would remain normal, including during the curfew period.
But changes will be possible afterwards.
"We will keep the transport open and after that we will assess depending on the attendance, the gauge, and the imperatives of the curfew how we adapt the service," she explained.
But when will these changes take place?
“A reinforcement of the offer between 8 pm and 9 pm is possible” according to the FNAUT
After only a weekend of curfew, it is still too early, according to the organizing authority, to take stock to adapt the offer.
Data on Parisian public transport traffic this weekend is not available.
Attendance however seemed to drop sharply from Friday evening.
And if we compare to taxis, the main central, G7, indicates to have recorded a vertiginous drop in reservations during the night from Saturday to Sunday: -75% compared to the Saturday before.
And on the night from Sunday to Monday, it was still a drop of 25%.
For public transport, we can also for the moment rely on the impressions of users.
Like Gamal, who saw the strong crowd from Friday evening at midnight, at the start of the curfew.
"It was running in all directions, people wanted to be back on time," assures this inhabitant of Suresnes in Hauts-de-Seine, who then, the next day, took public transport at 11:30 pm, in full curfew, with a certificate to collect medication.
Change of atmosphere.
“The curfew was taken very seriously.
There was hardly anyone on line 1 between La Défense and the Champs-Elysées.
I only met a homeless man and RATP agents, ”he says.
Surprising indeed for a Saturday evening.
First night of curfew in the Paris metro at midnight Porte Maillot.
Surreal atmosphere.
pic.twitter.com/OLRJChzJNi
- Gamal Abina (@GamalAbina) October 18, 2020
This also makes user associations say that adaptations are possible.
"We had first testimonies on the fact that there could be a lot of people in the period just before the curfew, between 8 pm and 9 pm, with people who would no doubt have returned later in normal times" , indicates Marc Pélissier, president of the FNAUT Ile-de-France association.
A reinforcement of the offer at these times is possible, he believes.
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On the other hand, during the curfew period, “we are not opposed to this being alleviated.
But it must be done intelligently, on lines where there is not just one train every half hour, ”continues Marc Pelissier.
His association is also keen that the offer is not reduced between 5 am and 6 am.
“We know that there are a lot of people who work very early,” he says.
But for now, there is no indication of the date and form that a change in the transport offer would take.
"We have not been consulted for the moment", indicates Marc Pélissier.