After line 14, an automatic line in the Paris region could also be extended.
This June, the Grand Paris Express transport project which includes four automatic metro lines around Paris (lines 15, 16, 17 and 18) and two extensions of existing lines (lines 11 and 14) has accelerated in preparation for the Paris Olympic Games. Line 14 of the Paris metro has been extended by six new stations to the north with the Saint-Denis – Pleyel station and to the south with the Maison Blanche, Hôpital Bicêtre, L’Haÿ-les-Roses, Chevilly-Larue, Thiais-Orly and Aéroport d’Orly stations. This extension of line 14 now connects Orly Airport to the centre of the capital in just 25 minutes, as well as its northern terminus, Saint-Denis – Pleyel, in 40 minutes. In this context, the automatic metro previously dedicated to serving the airport, Orlyval, is now in the hot seat. What is the future of this line?
Departing from the city of Antony via the RER B in Hauts-de-Seine, the Orlyval has been transporting passengers to the four terminals of Orly airport for over 30 years at a relatively high cost: 11.30 euros, excluded from the Navigo Pass. “With the opening of the extension of line 14 to Orly airport in 2024 and then that of line 18 in 2027 between the Saclay plateau and Orly Airport, then, in 2030, to Versailles-Chantiers, the Orlyval shuttle will lose its attractiveness and its traffic will drop drastically compared to the current situation”, the Île-de-France Mobilités transport network had conceded to BFMTV. Faced with the uncertain future of the line, which has not yet been decided by Valérie Pécresse, the president of IDFM, the Paris region transport union is not considering dismantling it, which would prove costly – “dismantling would cost more than 200 million euros” according to the mayor of Antony – but rather a transformation.
The Orlyval line would be on track to become a local line extended by 3 stations which would serve the towns of 91 and 94: Rungis – La Fraternelle (Val-de-Marne), Gare de Wissous (Essonne) as well as Chemin d’Antony (a poorly served district of the city of Hauts-de-Seine) in addition to the terminus at the RER B station. At this stage, the transformation of the line into a local service is indeed “the only option that can be envisaged in the long term” according to IDFM, far ahead of the removal of the line to make it a cycle path or bus or shuttle lines.
The mayor of Rungis, Bruno Marcillaud, is optimistic and is already delighted with this solution which would serve “the interests of [ses] residents, but also employees,” he told Le Figaro. Out of 6,000 inhabitants of the commune, 35,000 jobs are affected by the future of Orlyval. According to the experts consulted by IDFM, the investments could be located around 290 million euros. Studies to deepen the line will be launched after the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.