The letter of the prefect of the Île-de-France region to the Minister of Transport, obtained by Le Canard Enchaîné, asserts that the Paris public transport system will not be able to handle the mass of spectators for the 2024 Paris Olympics if regular users also use the network. Could this lead to a request for an “Olympic lockdown”? The prefect’s office denies such an idea.
This phrase will send shivers down the spine of many, recalling recent events that still cause some concern: will there be an “Olympic lockdown” for residents of the Île-de-France from July 26 to August 11, 2024? The possibility cannot be ruled out, according to Le Canard Enchaîné, which had access to a letter sent by the Prefect of the Île-de-France region, Marc Guillaume, to the Minister of Transport, Clément Beaune, on November 28th of last year.
Contacted by BFM Paris, the prefect’s office formally denies such an idea. “There has never been any question of an Olympic lockdown, on the contrary! This goes against what the prefect wants, which is a popular mobilization. On the contrary, the Games should thrive,” they say.
However, according to this letter, the projections for saturation of the Île-de-France transport network seem very alarming. “In certain areas, the transport plan only allows spectators to be transported if all other passengers are dissuaded or almost dissuaded,” explains the Prefect to Clément Beaune. The latter had just announced in the media, “We will be ready.” In other words, according to the regional prefect, the current network will not be able to handle the mass of tourists coming for the event if regular users maintain their usual habits.
Will it be necessary to ask the region’s residents to stay at home during the Olympics to allow the transport network to withstand and avoid a disaster in the transportation of spectators? Le Canard Enchaîné talks about a possible “Olympic lockdown” that raises questions, an expression echoed this Thursday by Le Monde.
100% saturation on the RER
In his letter, Marc Guillaume mentions regular exceeding of “saturation thresholds” on 11 out of 16 metro lines and on five RER lines… 68% saturation for the metro, 100% for the RER, along with difficulties on the bus network. Between 500,000 and one million spectators per day are expected for the Paris 2024 Games.
Speaking to France 3 Île-de-France, Bernard Gobitz, Vice President of the National Federation of Île-de-France Public Transport User Associations (FNAUT), points out future problems on lines 9 and 10 at the end of certain events taking place simultaneously at Roland Garros and Parc des Princes. He also mentions the case of the Stade de France, which had already made an impression during the 2022 Champions League final.
