From rising metro prices to traffic congestion, transport in and around Paris has become more challenging due to the Olympics. Three commuters told RFI about their travel woes.
The French government warned, well ahead of the start of the Olympics, that transport in and around Paris would be complicated. They even developed an interactive website dedicated to planning travel during Paris 2024.
The city's ring road, which is already maddening during normal rush hours, is even more congested because of priority Olympic lanes reserved for authorised vehicles only.
The Paris 2024 lanes also cover motorways and some roads within the city. All this, in order to enable athletes to reach competition venues within 30 minutes.
Meanwhile the price of single tickets on the Paris metro has practically doubled, and some travellers have found themselves shut out of certain zones because of security restrictions.
RFI met three people working in Paris but living outside the city. They each shared their experiences of getting around the city day to day.
Brahim Ben Ali, union representative
Brahim Ben Ali called Paris 2024 the “Games of shame”.
The union rep advocates for drivers of private hire cars as part of the Force Ouvrière confederation.
“The Olympics will be a social catastrophe. A colleague called me to say that she declaring bankruptcy because she can no longer access the hotels with which she had contracts,” he told RFI.
Private hire cars, which include ride-share services such as Uber and Bolt, are not allowed to use the priority Olympic lanes or to enter maximum security zones in Paris.
They are, however, allowed into areas under lower restrictions as long as their passengers have a valid QR code, and can pick up clients there if they show a booking to security forces.
Who needs QR Codes for getting around during Paris Olympics?
Dolores Bariteau, hairdresser
Dolores Bariteau loves the atmosphere the Olympic Games has brought to Paris.
“It is a party and such a pity that Parisians have fled the city. After all, it is a once-in-lifetime event to experience,” she said.
Transport-wise, Bariteau told RFI she cannot see much difference.
“I use either my car or public transport to come to work,” she said. “I have been using public transport more now because of the usual infuriating bottlenecks to access Paris.
“People in Paris are more pleasant these days. They feel safe as there are so many more police patrolling the city. It should be like that all the time.”
Hocine Atek, butcher
Hocine Atek does not want to experience another Olympic Games again.
“It is a nightmare to travel into town to my butchery shop and impossible for me to deliver restaurants because of the traffic jams and long detours,” he told RFI.
The bottlenecks brought on by the traffic restrictions around Olympic sites in the northern suburbs of Saint-Denis have exacerbated traffic congestion.
Atek said he has to wait until 10pm in his shop for traffic to ease so he can drive the usual 30 minutes to go back home.
“We thought that Paris 2024 would bring more tourists but I am down 30 percent in profits. A lot of my clients have left Paris and those who live outside the city do not want to endure the traffic jams.”
