Tribune. The need to rethink our lifestyles is pressing in the face of the challenges imposed by climate change and the objectives set out in international policy documents. France must now sow the seeds of more sustainable and equitable mobility between regions.
It is for this reason that a collective of associations is calling, without delay, for a strengthening and development of the railway offer to meet the demand for daily and regular mobility, both in the territories of large metropolitan areas. and in rural and peripheral areas.
To meet international and European objectives, France must invest massively and strategically in daily trains, which include metropolitan relations, but also small lines that are now abandoned.
The backbone of everyday mobility
In several European countries, the train is the backbone of daily mobility. It is from this backbone that all the other modes of transport alternative to the car are articulated. The train offers many advantages in line with the necessary ecological transition.
First of all, the train considerably limits energy consumption, air pollution and noise pollution, while limiting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The train in France transports 9% of goods and 11% of passengers, for only 0.3% of GHGs.
By its limited hold on space, the train makes it possible to contain the artificialization of land, which is mainly due to the construction of new road infrastructures and to the sprawl of housing, which leads to choosing the private car as the mode. dominant and structuring transport.
The state invests more in the road than in the rail
The train contributes to the improvement of public health under the triple effect of the reduction in pollution, traffic accidents and sedentary lifestyle. The train can contribute to the return of public services to the rural world and promote more balanced land use planning thanks to the 30,000 km of already existing tracks.
These railways need to be improved in order to develop a dense network and fine service, on which other modes of transport can be linked and thus promote intermodality. Faced with the social challenges of energy transition, the development of the train would help develop employment and contribute to the reindustrialisation of France.
You have 58.24% of this article left to read. The rest is for subscribers only.