France: EUR 500 million for the tramway in Paris

Today, Ms Anne Hidalgo, First Deputy to the Mayor of Paris, and Mr Philippe de Fontaine Vive Curtaz, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), signed a EUR 500m agreement for the extension of the tramway in the east of the capital. The EIB had previously contributed to the construction of the first section of the Paris tramway in the capital's southern districts (the T3) between Pont Garigliano (15th Arrondissement) and Porte d’Ivry (13th Arrondissement) via a EUR 130m loan.

This operation is important for several reasons:

• this new partnership between the EU and the City of Paris will help the capital to diversify its external resources on optimum terms as regards maturity, interest rate and flexibility of use. It will enable the City of Paris to spread the repayment of this investment over a long period (25 years).
• this tramway project is the result of a partnership between the City of Paris, the Île de France Region, Syndicat des Transports d’Île de France and Régie Autonome des Transports de Paris. The City of Paris is responsible for implementing the project and will, together with the Paris Department, undertake two thirds of its financing, with the Region covering the remaining third; 
• the T3 tramline forms part of the Île de France Region's urban mobility plan (PDIUF - Plan des Déplacements Urbains de la Région Île de France) and the 14.5 km extension from Porte d’Ivry to Porte de la Chapelle with 26 new stations will improve public transport and connections with the underground and regional rapid transit (RER - Réseau Express Régional) network. The works started in early 2009 and the tramway is expected to be commissioned by the end of 2012.

The construction of a circular tramway as a complement to the radial underground railway system is aimed at making public transport throughout Greater Paris more attractive with a view to reducing car use in the city and thereby improving the quality of life of its inhabitants. It will also contribute to the renewal of outlying roads and districts that are amongst the capital’s most densely populated.

“The development of sustainable urban transport in Europe is a priority for the EIB. Furthermore, I am especially pleased to sign this new sizeable finance contract with the City of Paris. Four years ago, the Paris tramway and its first section were an immediate success with users and passenger volumes have exceeded all forecasts. By publicising this type of operation, we can demonstrate how close the EIB, the bank of the European Union, is to its citizens”, Mr de Fontaine Vive stated.

“The City is demonstrating its resolve to build henceforth a sustainable metropolis by seeking to provide a diversified range of non-polluting public transport services accessible to all, while confirming its commitment to reclassify the capital's eastern districts", Ms Hidalgo declared.     

About the EIB and its support for urban transport

The EIB views its lending in favour of exclusive lane public transport as part of its action to promote sustainable urban development, with the emphasis on reducing pollution and improving the quality of life in urban areas. It has provided funding for numerous urban transport projects, notably in Bordeaux, Clermont-Ferrand, Grenoble, Le Mans, Lyons, Marseilles, Montpellier, Mulhouse, Nancy, Nantes, Nice, Orleans, Paris, Reims, Strasbourg, Toulon, Toulouse and Valenciennes; these operations amount to almost EUR 4bn over the past decade in France and exceed EUR 20bn throughout the European Union. The Bank has been involved in financing metros and tramways in various cities, including Athens, Alicante, Barcelona, Bilbao, Brussels, Berlin, Valencia, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Munich, Düsseldorf, Manchester, Dublin, Budapest and Prague.

The EIB is the bank of the European Union.  Its remit is to provide mainly long-term loans for viable public or private investment projects, aimed at furthering the EU’s integration, cohesion and development objectives, broken down into six priority policies: economic and social cohesion; protection of the natural and urban environment; research and innovation; support for SMEs; trans-European transport networks; and support for sustainable, competitive and secure energy. In 2008, it provided EUR 57bn of funding in the European Union and in 2009, in order to help the economy to tackle the financial crisis, this figure is expected to reach EUR 70bn in support of local authorities and businesses.