UITP (the International Association of Public Transport) welcomes the draft French national transport infrastructure scheme (SNIT) presented on 13 July by the French Ecology Minister Jean-Louis Borloo. The proposal, which is due to be adopted at the end of 2010, sets out a total of 170 billion euros worth of investment in alternatives to road transport over 20 to 30 years, including 55 billion euros for urban public transport. UITP encourages the French government to maintain these goals and invites other countries to follow its example.

The investment proposed by the French government is in line with the sustainable development goals set out in the Grenelle de l’Environnement, the French government’s environment action plan. These aims also clearly reflect those of the international strategy launched by UITP in June 2009, aiming to double the public transport market share worldwide by 2025. This is the reason why the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) encourages the French government to maintain its investment priorities and launches an international call for more investment in public transport.

UITP notes that public transport:

-         Empowers the economy: in France, the proposed investment will help to create or maintain some 65,000 jobs. Across Europe, the public transport sector provides 1.2 million direct jobs and between 2 and 2.5 million indirect jobs.

-         Helps the planet breathe: in France, the government estimates that CO2 emissions will fall by 100 million tonnes over 50 years.

According to the Mobility in Cities Database (UITP, 2006), in cities where the share of public transport + walking + cycling is over 55%, on average passenger transport produces 2.4 fewer tonnes of CO2 emissions annually compared to cities where private transport has a share of over 75%.

-         Brings everyone everywhere.

-         Alleviates congestion.

***

Notes to Editors

UITP (International Association of Public Transport) is the international network for public transport authorities and operators, policy decision-makers, scientific institutes and the public transport supply and service industry. It is a platform for worldwide cooperation, business development and the sharing of know-how between its 3,200 members from 90 countries. UITP is the global advocate for public transport and sustainable mobility, and the promoter of innovations in the sector. For more information, please visit www.uitp.org.