Projet de Bus à Haut Niveau de Service de Toulon
Bus Rapid Transit Project in Toulon, France
Double-bill today with this new duo of maps of a proposed BRT line in my hometown of Toulon, France
It is relatively recently that the project was proposed as to offer a rapid transit option to an urban area of approximately 570.000 (the 9th most populated urban area in France) which still relies on an -admittedly extensive- regular bus network only (including 3 water-bus lines)
However, the idea of a tramway was first introduced back in 1976 (!) to ease up mobility in a growing city whose topographic constraints (stuck between the Mediterranean Sea and the Mont Faron) would soon prove to be an impediment in the way of further expanding the road network needed to absorb an ever increasing traffic
For various reasons, Toulon has unswervingly shown to be a stubbornly car-centric city where making that tramway a reality sometimes feels more like a pipe dream than a serious mobility project
Fast-forward to the early 2000s when the then-new mayor boldly proclaims the tramway an "outdated option" and starts pushing the idea of a BRT line to alleviate traffic in a city now choking itself on exhaust fumes and congestion
The idea underlying this sudden change is mainly to prevent disrupting traffic too much on central thoroughfares where the new line is planned to run while mitigating expenditures: the construction of a 3.3km-long crosstown road tunnel spanning over 23 years (!) and a backdrop of technical defects and soaring costs has remained a vivid trauma and still sparks a strong defiance towards large-scale mobility projects in the city...
And here we are nowadays, still waiting for that BRT to run through the city...
As for the maps themselves, they show the most-probable route for the BRT line and how it would connect to the bus network operated by Réseau Mistral
Toulon main railway station and the adjacent regional bus terminal will not be directly served but nevertheless stand at a reasonably short walking distance from stops in the central area
Bus route 15 will probably also function as a link between the SNCF railway station, BRT line and the ferry-bus services (part of Réseau Mistral transit network) crossing the harbour towards La Seyne-sur-mer and Saint Mandrier
Conversely, the BRT will stop at two existing railway stations (La Seyne/Six-Fours and La Garde) as well as to yet-to-be-built stations (Halte Escaillon/Ste Roseline and Halte Ste Musse) where users will be able to transfer to/from the regional Marseille-Toulon-Les Arcs/Draguignan line (and also to/from the Toulon-Hyères/La Pauline spur upon which La Garde station is located)
Those proposed new train stations are part of a recent discussion to implement a RER-like commuter service on the regional line by increasing frequency and allow easier and more efficient east/west movements across the area
First version of the map shows proposed route on a geographic backdrop featuring the coastline while the other one focuses on connectivity with the inclusion of an index of bus lines available for transfers along the BRT route
