Guillaume Pépy, President of SNCF, and Christian Estrosi, Deputy Mayor of Nice.
You have visited the train stations in Nice, what is your assessment?
What impressed me was the work to be done, but also the political will to rehabilitate the historic station, Thiers Station, which is an extraordinary building with tremendous potential. We have decided to first continue with urgent work worth 3 million euros and then, together with the city of Nice, SNCF, and other partners, we will define a much more ambitious program. By the end of May, the details of this new work will be known so we can restore the station, its neighborhood, in connection with the tramway and other transportation, to the significant place that the train should have in today’s society and in Nice.
You say that Nice could become a pilot site in terms of stations?
Yes, you know, stations are extraordinary places today; we have somewhat neglected them and it’s partly our fault. But now we want the station to be more at the heart of the city, to be a station not only for trains but also for all modes of soft transportation. Perhaps we will work with elected officials to create a place for dialogue, an establishment that will ensure that the stations of Nice are no longer managed as in the past, solely by SNCF.
The renovation protocol to be signed in May will cover Thiers station, but also St-Augustin, St-Roch…?
No, I believe we should not mix all the operations. The Mayor of Nice has a very clear vision of the role of each station; there is even a master plan that has been established. Thiers Station is the historic station, there will always be high-speed trains (TGV), but we need to restore the sparkle it undoubtedly had more than a century ago, and I am determined, as are the elected officials.
You have been to St-Augustin at the site intended for the High-Speed Line, what is SNCF’s position on the HSL?
SNCF does not have a position; it is the elected officials who decide. There is a process that has been established. All I can tell you is that we are looking at it with great interest, because we realize in Nice that the quicker decisions are made, the sooner we can equip Nice and the French Riviera with an infrastructure that everyone is anticipating.
How do you explain that Thiers station had been neglected for many years?
We have talked quite a bit about this with Christian Estrosi because both of us are responsible. I believe things are changing; there is no inevitability. What we used to think of as doomed, like local trains, today they are the regional trains (TER) that quite a few people envy us for. This station in Nice, it has often been out of sight, out of mind. We are determined to really bring it back to the forefront. SNCF will put energy, intelligence, and resources into this!
