Extension of key Paris metro line opens in time for 2024 Olympics

The €3.5 billion extension of metro line 14 opened on Monday after some eight years of work - just in time for the Paris Olympic Games (26 July - 11 August) and Paralympics (28 August - 8 September).

The 28 kilometre-long extension, with eight new stations, will serve the athletes' village, the Stade de France and the aquatic centre to the north.

It is expected to ease the pressure on the Paris region transport system by linking the southern Orly airport to the city centre in just 25 minutes.

Until then, Orly was only served by a single dedicated bus line, a tramway and an automatic metro line that did not pass through Paris, forcing the vast majority of travellers and employees to take the car.

President Macron made the inaugural trip between two stations in the northern suburbs of Paris on Monday but didn't make an official speech.

But he had previously referred to the extension as a project that would "succeed in changing lives in a very concrete way" and hailed it as an example of successful team work.

'Supermetro'

The Line 14 extension is the only transport infrastructure delivered on time compared to what was promised in the Paris 2024 bid.

Racing against the clock, construction continued non-stop, even during the Covid-19 pandemic and required numerous line closures on weekends, during school holidays and evenings.

The line is expected to have around one million passengers per day by mid-2025, becoming the first "supermetro" in the Paris region.

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The organisers are counting on the efficiency of public transport as it will be the first Games in history to prohibit car access to the sites.

According to forecast data analysed hour by hour by French news agency AFP, the Paris metro and inter-regional RER lines will be put to the test during the Olympics, with around 140 stations out of nearly 450 in Paris and its inner suburbs expected to face severe overcrowding before and after events.

Besides metro and train lines, thousands of shuttle buses will be made available to cope with the influx of tourists.

Nearly 400 kilometres of cycle lanes have been developed with 3,000 additional self-service bicycles made available.

(with AFP)