“It feels like a childhood dream come true.” Usually terse and serious, Bruno Bernard appeared deeply moved as he officially inaugurated France’s very first river public transport line on Wednesday, June 18, in Lyon. “This is an important moment – we are reconnecting with a distant past,” said the president of the Grand Lyon agglomeration (Les Ecologistes, the Green party) and of the transport authority SYTRAL Mobilités, as he boarded one of the four 70-seat shuttles operated by Lyon’s public transport network (TCL). The vessels will run along the Saône every day of the week, from the Confluence district in the South of Lyon to Vaise in the North.
The official had not included this mode of transport in his policy platform during the 2020 elections. “Technical studies showed us that it was possible, and the mayor of Lyon was very keen!” Bernard added, nudging Lyon’s Green mayor, Grégory Doucet. “We are continuing our efforts to decarbonize transport and reconnect with our rivers,” the official continued, dressed in a white shirt and sunglasses, hair blowing in the wind, captivated by the enchanting journey at a top speed of 12 kilometers per hour between the UNESCO World Heritage-listed buildings.
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