Christian Estrosi likes making strong announcements and is playing the green economy card: “In 2019, we will acquire six electric buses, and in the short term: no more diesel buses will be operating on the Promenade des Anglais! In the medium term and gradually until 2025, I want no more diesel buses on the network.”
Less than a month before the opening of the first section of the East-West tram line, Christian Estrosi announced the restructuring of the bus network. Reducing user waiting times, a more fluid network, and cleaner vehicles are the upcoming modernization elements for the metropolitan bus network.
The work on tram line 2 is coming to an end, prompting local officials to restructure the city’s transport network. During a press conference held this Monday, the President of the metropolis confirmed his desire to alleviate road traffic, notably through changes to the bus network.
Currently, more than 1,200 buses are operating throughout the metropolis, and this number is expected to be reduced to 800 by 2020. The diesel buses will be replaced by 100% electric vehicles; “all the districts traversed by our bus network will benefit from improved quality of life: less noise, less pollution, and new amenities. No more diesel buses will run on the network,” stated the President of the Metropolis, visibly pleased to announce this environmental advancement.
A reduction in waiting time by 5 to 10 minutes for users depending on the stops and new routes designed to best simplify citizen mobility.
On June 20th, an electric bus will be added to the network (line 23) of the metropolis to be tested in Nice’s road traffic.
New: An app that allows you to geolocate your bus
Tested for two months by users of line 63, the Zenbus app lets you track the bus route and assess the waiting time at each stop in real time.
Available for free download since this Monday, only line 63 is being tested. But line 52 is next in the operation. A technology being gradually implemented in the network, which will incur no additional cost for users.
by Hadrien Acaldi, EdJ
