The Council of State examines this Tuesday the financing plan of the LGV Sud-Ouest. A formality according to François Chauzy, the president of the Economic and Social Council of Occitanie, invited this Tuesday morning by France Bleu Occitanie. Even if some communities have not paid their share.
The LGV will put Paris at 3 hours 10 from Toulouse against a little more than 4 hours today. A 14 billion euro project. The examination of the financing plan is today before the Council of State. Is it a simple formality?
It’s Valentine’s Day for TGV lovers. The Council of State will sanction the decisions taken, namely the share of the communities in the 4.1 billion euros of the project. Each community signed in time for the Council of State to render a favorable decision.
Opponents say there is a problem. They say that the European Union will not give enough money. What do you think ?
They must leave quickly in training since Europe has classified Bordeaux-Toulouse in the major European corridors, which entitles us to the financing of European interconnection mechanisms in a budget of 20 billion euros.
The Sud-Ouest has been scolded by the European Court of Auditors over the delays in the construction of the LGVs and in the mobilization of the promised money. So the state will make the request and it will get a positive response. Europe will match up to 20%, which it does for all major infrastructure across Europe.
Europe, you say there is no problem. On the other hand, some communities do not want to pay. I am thinking of Lot-et-Garonne. Does this endanger the LGV?
It does not put the LGV in danger because Alain Rousset, the president of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, did what was necessary. The Region replaced itself by deliberation exactly 9 days ago, up to 125 million million euros. It will be reimbursed on the transfer of the revenue that SNCF Réseau will pocket, which is part of the co-financing. Communities that have not contributed will not be entitled to these receipts. It is therefore the Region that will be reimbursed from the revenue provided by SNCF Réseau.
New Aquitaine will therefore invest 225 million euros. What you are saying is that it is not necessarily the taxpayers who will have to pay for those who do not want to do so, such as Lot-et-Garonne?
That’s it. The Region’s budget will be reimbursed by SNCF Réseau instead of Lot-et-Garonne, which is really below what we could have hoped for on projects. It is the project of a century that we are talking about, that we have been dreaming about for 30 years. When you make very large stations, like Bordeaux Saint-Jean and the great Matabiau, it’s for a century.
Jean Castex, the Prime Minister, threatened not to put a station in Agen if Lot-et-Garonne did not pay. Can the threat really be carried out?
No, because it would be necessary to redo a declaration of public utility. It’s out of the question not to be four or five years behind schedule.
So Lot et Garonne has it all figured out: you don’t pay, but you have everything.
They will be cornered by the State when they need the State or the Region on other major projects, which Lot-et-Garonne needs. It will be give and take and it will be quite normal.
Jean-Louis Chauzy, the schedule for this LGV is the start of work in 2024. Jean Castex repeated it yesterday during a visit to the Gers, commissioning in 2030, in eight years. Honestly, that’s not unrealistic, right?
Yes, it is because it is the observation of reality. This is what was done for Tours-Bordeaux for example. The inauguration was announced five years before, on July 1, 2017. We were all there on July 1, 2017 in Bordeaux to welcome the arrival of the LGV.
In the Region, moreover, no one protested about the damage to biodiversity, a few hectares which were sacrificed. If everyone finds it normal that Bordeaux is 2 hours from Paris, and everyone should find it normal in some corners of the South-West that Toulouse remains 4h20 from Paris? All this makes no sense and the deadlines will be respected. It will be 5,000 jobs, 5,000 permanent contracts created by companies to create as many indirect jobs. So it’s a big project, a big challenge, jobs and enhanced attractiveness.
And the TGV also participates in daily transport. How do you want to put people on the train, as part of sustainable development, if there is no infrastructure? Imagine if we only had roads that date back a century to cope with population growth. Our two regions together represent 100,000 more inhabitants per year. In ten years, that’s a million. How do we get around? Mobility is a major issue. People want out of the pandemic. They want to be able to travel for leisure, for culture and also for work. The LGV is also the daily transport tool for these journeys.
Does that mean perhaps a Toulouse RER as some would like?
Of course, because the new infrastructure in Bordeaux and Toulouse will allow it to be put in place. The lines will also have a mix. It is also used for the transport of goods. We cannot yell at trucks and do nothing to promote rail freight.