Paris is hosting the 2024 Olympic Games from July 24 to August 11, an event that will attract more than 15 million visitors. This is a monumental challenge for the city, which will face complex challenges to ensure that the infrastructure and transportation systems can cope with the massive influx of athletes, delegations, spectators, media…
Here are the major mobility and transport challenges facing the French capital this summer:
1. Capacity of its infrastructure network
Olympic cities must assess whether their public transport network, roads and airports are able to cope with a significant increase in passenger volume. This often requires expanding the public transport network, upgrading existing infrastructure, increasing airport capacity, etc.
The Ile-de-France region, together with the public entity Île-de France Mobilités and the French government, have developed a transport plan for the Olympic Games which includes measures aimed at increasing and improving the Parisian infrastructure network, some of these measures are as follows:
– The frequency of existing public transport lines will increase by 15% on average, and up to 70% on some lines.
– Extension of existing lines. Of particular note is the extension (already in operation after more than six years of construction work) of metro line 14, which will run from Saint-Deins-Pleyel (in the vicinity of the Stade de France) to Paris-Orly airport, bringing the airport to 25 minutes from the center of Paris.
– 10 free shuttle bus routes to access the competition venues located far from the stations.
– More than 1,000 buses to transport athletes and accredited personnel.
In terms of airport capacity, one of the most significant measures has been taken at Charles de Gaulle Airport. With its 4 runways, 4 control towers, and 36 operational controller positions, it is one of the busiest airports in the world, with 67 million passengers during 2023. In order to improve operational efficiency and reduce delays and cancellations during the Olympic Games, the Aircraft Surface Movement Control and Guidance System (A-SMGCS) has been upgraded to handle 48 arrivals per hour. In addition to this measure, other improvements and reinforcements are planned in the customs and operational areas of the airport to handle a greater number of flights and passengers.
2. Traffic management
Increased traffic during the Olympic Games can cause significant congestion, affecting not only the event but also local residents. To try to mitigate this problem, effective traffic management strategies must be implemented.
With regard to private vehicles, traffic circulation will be regulated during the Games, and the Paris Police Headquarters has established security perimeters around each venue, which will affect vehicle traffic. These perimeters are not permanent (except around the Olympic Village), but are activated 2 hours before the start of the events and end 1 hour after their completion. Four perimeters are established for each venue: gray, black, red and blue.
– Gray (organizing perimeter). Corresponds to the competition site. Accessible only to spectators with tickets and accredited persons.
– Red. Motorized circulation prohibited (unless there is an exemption, such as emergency vehicles, emergency interventions, suppliers, cabs or authorized delivery services, professionals working in the area, etc.). Pedestrians and bicycles circulate freely in this area.
– Blue. Regulated circulation zone. It is intended to discourage traffic around the red perimeter. Access may only be justified (deliveries, assistance, access to home, work, etc.).
– SILT protection perimeter (Internal Security and Fight against Terrorism Act), represented by a blue line. To access it, you must pass a check by the state security forces.
Example of security perimeters at Trocadero, Eiffel Tower, Grand Palais or Alexander III Bridge.
(Photo: prefecturedepolice.interieur.gouv.fr).
Another traffic management measure is the implementation of lanes reserved for the movement of athletes, accredited personnel and public transport during the Games. Some of these lanes will be permanent, while others will be dynamic, and will be activated according to traffic conditions and the event schedule.
More than 185 kilometers of roads have been identified and will be reserved if necessary (0.5% of the region’s road network), ensuring that any of the venues can be reached from the Olympic Village in a maximum of 30 minutes.
3. Sustainability and Accessibility. The green commitment of Paris
This edition of the Olympics pursues the ambitious goal of being the greenest games ever held, adding environmental awareness and responsibility for the future of the planet to its commitment to sport. We review some of the most significant measures.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), as in previous editions, will be in charge of Olympic mobility, and has opted for electric mobility in Paris 20224. Thus, the event will have more than 2,600 vehicles, of which 605 will be 100% electric and the rest will be hybrids. There will also be 500 hydrogen cabs and 50 buses will be converted from diesel to hydrogen. After the Games, the cabs will become part of the city’s regular fleet and the buses will serve public and private companies in the region.
In addition, some tests are planned for other sustainable and innovative means, such as electric and autonomous ferries on the Seine or eVTOLs (electric flying cabs with vertical take-off and landing).
Cycling is one of the most efficient ways to get around central Paris and the surrounding area. Although Paris already has an extensive network of bike paths, this will be extended to 415 kilometers of bike paths throughout the Ile-de-France region, making all Olympic venues accessible by bike (“Olympistes”). The lanes will be safe and decorated in the Olympic colors. In addition to this measure, new free and guarded parking spaces will be made available, and various investments will be made in the city’s bicycle rental system (Velib’ Metropole), which will renew and expand its fleet.
Map with different bike lanes of Paris 2024. (Photo: Cyclosphere).
Map with different bike lanes of Paris 2024. (Photo: Cyclosphere).
These measures are part of an agenda that seeks to significantly reduce the Games’ carbon footprint, including the use of renewable energies, the implementation of recycling and waste reduction strategies at the venues, etc.
In terms of accessibility, as part of its “Mobility for All” program, the Games will have 150 vehicles adapted for people with reduced mobility, a last-mile service prepared to transport people with special needs (Accessible People Mover or APM), which will have 250 units, and an electric wheelchair puller, among others.
APM unit (left) and electric wheelchair puller (right). (Photo: El Confidencial).
4. Technology, Information and Coordination: The Olympics are also contested in the digital world
Technology plays a crucial role in the management of transportation and mobility during the course of any major event. Real-time transport information systems can help in the proper management of mass mobility and the efficient use of available infrastructures.
At this point, it is interesting to take up another of the articles in this blog, in which we analyzed the impact of mass tourism and the different uses of new technologies for mobility management.
In Paris 2024, the Ile-de-France public transport consortium has created a mobile application to facilitate transfers during the Games. This is “Paris 2024 Transport Public”, which makes it possible to plan journeys to the venues, consult personalized traffic information or check the status of routes in real time. It also integrates other services such as the purchase of public transport tickets, or the management and display of tickets for the various events.
Paris 2024 Transport Public mobile application. (Photo: Île de France Mobilités).
Paris 2024 Transport Public mobile application. (Photo: Île de France Mobilités).
From this application, and in relation to the management of public transport, you can purchase the Paris 2024 Pass, a transport voucher that allows you to use all means of public transport in the city, to move at any time (between July 20 and September 8) between all venues, in addition to covering the two main airports (Orly and Charles de Gaulle), the center of Paris, its suburbs, the castles of Versailles or Fontainebleau (among others), and even Disneyland Paris.
Also in relation to the settlement of new technologies, in an attempt to mitigate the massive increase in traffic and the occupation of Public Transport during the Games, the French government has implemented a flexible teleworking policy for its civil servants. Thus, a reform published in the Official State Gazette will allow Parisian civil servants to enjoy 10 additional days of telework during this year, and establishes a compensation of 28.22€ for each day of telework, in order to mitigate the possible additional costs for employees to adapt their homes to telecommuting.
5. Social and economic impact. Paris does not stop for the Olympics and will still be there when the Olympic flame is extinguished
The Olympic Games also have a significant impact on the daily lives of local residents, on transportation and mobility, and on the city’s economy. This is also one of the main challenges facing this competition, which will need to minimize disruption to residents’ activities and also take advantage of the opportunity provided by this prestigious international event to provide long-term benefits to the city for both residents and its visitors.
As an illustration of the reality of the impact the Games will have, it is worth recalling the statements made by the current President of the Ile-de-France Regional Council, Valérie Pécresse, who, at an event with the press to clarify the management of mass tourism, declared, “It is true that the Games are going to cause a lot of inconvenience to the region’s residents for a few weeks. It is true and it is unavoidable”, and then clarified: ”We will have to take away from the Parisians the automatism they have with the transports. We are relying on collective intelligence, such as, for example, getting off one stop before the Metro stop. We should not be afraid to walk a little. It’s good for your health and it will be August. Besides, most of the visitors will be between 25 and 35 years old. We hope that, at that age, some of them will be able to walk”.
These statements highlight the changes in the daily mobility of Parisians that the organization of the Olympic Games represents, and which the above-mentioned measures are intended to mitigate.
In any case, it should not be forgotten that this event offers a great opportunity to boost the economy of some sectors and foster new developments in the host city. In terms of infrastructure and transportation, some of the most important measures will remain present as a legacy of the Games, such as the increase in network capacity, the modernization of services, or the incorporation of more sustainable transportation systems, among others.
However, there is another side to the coin in the investments made for the Olympic Games, and that is that once the Games are over, some of the infrastructure remains unused, creating what is known in civil engineering as a “white elephant”, an expression used to define short-term projects built for mega-events that remain unused once they are overAbandoned ski jump ramp after the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo.
(Photo: Dado Ruvic. 2013. National Geographic).
Abandoned ski jump ramp after the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. (Photo: Dado Ruvic. 2013. National Geographic).
Abandoned ski jump ramp after the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. (Photo: Dado Ruvic. 2013. National Geographic).
To avoid new “white elephants”, Paris 2024 will take advantage of existing facilities, adapting them for the events. This has not only avoided the energy and material expenditure involved in building new stadiums, but also aims to ensure a more sustainable Olympic legacy, in which the new infrastructures will grow old integrated into the life of the city, once the Olympic flame has been extinguished.
Therefore, the organization of an Olympic Games presents complex challenges in terms of transport and mobility in all phases of the life of any project: both pre-event (in the viability of the venue to host the Games and the planning of the necessary infrastructure and services), in the stages present throughout the event (implementation and management), and also after the closing of the Olympic Games (for example, generating sustainable infrastructures integrated into the life of the city).
The key to addressing these challenges lies in meticulous planning, the implementation of advanced technologies, and effective coordination among all parties involved. By overcoming these challenges, a city can not only ensure the success of the Olympic Games, but also improve its transportation infrastructure for the future, benefiting residents and visitors alike.
Thank you for reading.
Carlos Gonzalez | Civil Engineer
References:
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