The Nice City Council is addressing the dossier on tram line 2 during today’s session following the investigation report. We receive and publish the following comments.
This investigation report does not resolve two fundamental questions:
The number of underground stations: from the entrance to the underground section on Rue de France to Quai Cassini, the service is insufficient. One or two additional stations are missing. How could the investigating commissioners consider the request for an additional station at Sainte Hélène, which we had advocated for and applaud, but not the other requests? Yet, the distance between the underground entrance and Alsace-Lorraine station is more than a kilometer, and similarly, between Alsace-Lorraine and Nice Etoile, it is over 900 meters.
The terminus of line 2 on Quai Cassini in the port area is an aberration, especially since it will remove parking spaces that are essential for the line’s terminus if we want to achieve true multimodality. The logical course would have been to connect to the SNCF Riquier station, possibly underground, which could have been done at an equivalent cost by reducing the underground section west of Nice Etoile. This was our proposal. Unfortunately, it was not considered by the investigating commissioners.
Conversely, we will closely follow the request to preserve the sports hall in the west. It is clear that constructing the tram’s technical maintenance center without demolishing the hall is common sense and good public fund management.
Patrick ALLEMAND, Municipal Councilor and President of the Changer d’ère Group
EuropeEcologie-Les Verts from the Nice region take note of the investigating commissioners’ report on the route of tram line 2.
They observe some improvements among those they had requested, particularly on the link to the airport, the preservation of the sports hall, and the addition of the St Hélène station.
Nevertheless, significant issues remain, particularly concerning:
- The underground part of the route, which incurs heavy costs to public finances and thus to taxpayers.
- The lack of a park-and-ride at the eastern terminus.
- The worrying absence of guarantees over the hydrological consequences of the underground project. According to the commissioners themselves: “The potential impact on the stability of gypsum masses is… difficult to assess,” “The buried route is oriented perpendicularly to the general direction of natural flows, so the structures will offer maximum hydraulic resistance.”
- The still excessively large spacing between stations in the hypercenter.
We are also very critical of the lack of intermodality. The proposed shuttles between the eastern terminus and Riquier station will only exacerbate circulation difficulties and air pollution in the neighborhood.
Luz-Nicaise
Very supportive of the implementation of this essential axis that will significantly improve East/West travel and connect the main urban centers, the CCI Nice Côte d’Azur is particularly pleased that Nice Côte d’Azur commits to:
- Establishing, with CCI Nice Côte d’Azur and the Chamber of Trades and Crafts, support for the economic fabric,
- Creating an Amicable Compensation Commission to compensate surrounding economic activities impacted by the works, if necessary
- Establishing a consultation with socio-professionals to best address their needs in terms of parking spaces, stopovers, delivery zones, and traffic lanes, throughout the route and especially on the Cassin – Californie axis.
According to Pascal NICOLETTI, Elected Member of CCI Nice Côte d’Azur in charge of transport, “one of our main requests concerned the needs of the economic fabric with the establishment of support and consultation before, during, and after the works.
We are satisfied to see that several of our demands on these fronts have been taken into account in the public inquiry report and by the Nice Côte d’Azur Metropole.”
Laurent Lachkar, Vice President, also indicates that “CCI Nice Côte d’Azur will remain vigilant and proposes to work on the commercial development prospects of the neighborhoods linked to this
new infrastructure.”
Regarding the position of line 2’s terminus, CCI Nice Côte d’Azur expressed concern about the “Quai Cassini” solution, which seems to be favored. This solution avoids a ramp on Rue Antoine Gaultier, thus minimizing the negative impact on the antique dealers’ district. However, its impact on port activity and port operation, and consequently traffic in the area, needs further analysis.
Our request for the establishment of a technical and steering committee bringing together Nice Côte d’Azur, the General Council of Alpes Maritimes, and CCI Nice Côte d’Azur has been heard. It is now important that it meets as soon as possible to analyze these aspects and delve into feasibility conditions.
Bernard Kleynhoff, President of CCI Nice Côte d’Azur
