Dk'Plus mobility

5017
Last modified by the author on 18/06/2019 - 10:44
  • Year of commitment : 2018
  • Address 1 - street : DUNKERQUE ET AGGLOMéRATION, France
  • Green energies : Biogas
  • Digital services : Mobility
  • Sustainable mobility : Greenways, Multimodal transit HUB for travelers

  • 65 000 000 €
  • Builder
    Several companies in the framework of public contracts
  • Manager / Dealer
    The urban community of Dunkerque manages public spaces (excluding departmental roads) and sanitation networks. The operation of the bus network is the subject of a public service delegation
​The DK'Plus de mobilité project is a flagship and structuring project, integrated within the "Sustainable Mobility" strategy of the Urban Community of Dunkirk. Its design goes well beyond the "Transport" component, as it is integrated transversely into the various territorial public policies and is part of the Dunkirk Urban Community 2015-2020 project to revitalise the urban centre.
The public transport offer in the Dunkirk conurbation had shown its limits. In 2015, the share of bus travel was less than 5% and it was almost exclusively used by a captive audience, who had no choice but to use the bus to get around. Beyond the image of the bus in the minds of the inhabitants, there are several reasons for this situation:
  • the bus network was becoming obsolete. The route of the lines had changed little since the network's inception and did not take into account the latest urban developments in the urban area.
  • it was difficult to read. The main lines had antennas at the ends and multiple paths;
  • it was not very efficient compared to travel times in private vehicles. Almost all trips from the municipalities in the heart of the conurbation to the city centre of Dunkirk can be made in less than 15 minutes by private vehicle, whereas it took more than 30 minutes by bus to go from the centre of Grande-Synthe to the station of Dunkirk, the central point of the conurbation;
  • the bus was unreliable. The length of the lines and traffic conditions at peak times did not allow the posted schedules to be respected, resulting in delays at stops;
  • the bus lines with a sustained frequency (10 minutes) served less than half the population of the centre of the Dunkirk conurbation. 
  • Finally, the operating cost of the network has increased by an average of more than €1.3 million per year since 2008 (+5% per year).
Faced with these observations, the Urban Community of Dunkirk has embarked on a vast project to restructure and improve its public transport network called "DK' Plus de mobilité", with multiple objectives:
  • Reduce inequalities in mobility by making the access network free, fairer and more balanced throughout the territory. The objective is to double the number of inhabitants served by a frequent line. It was 60,000 in 2017, it is with the 120,000 project. It is also to rebalance the quality of service between the east and west of the conurbation area.
  • A project that is better integrated into the territory and consistent with the intermunicipal Local Urban Plan. The developments contribute to opening up certain urban districts and in particular priority urban renewal districts. 
  • Strengthened links to neighbouring sustainable territories through the creation of a functional and efficient intermodal hub at Dunkirk station.
  • An efficient, reliable and performance-optimized public transit system
Summary of Dk'Plus de mobilité's objectives
  • more passengers in public transport, our ambition is to double the share of public transport in travel by 2020, increasing it to more than 10%.
To this end, it is necessary to build, in the agglomerate zone:
  • a faster network, by placing most of the inhabitants of the agglomeration less than 20 minutes from its centre, the Dunkirk station;
  • buses more often and closer, by designing a network that puts nearly 120,000 inhabitants near a line with a 10-minute frequency.
And for the inhabitants of the peripheral municipalities:
  • better access to the services of the urban centre (administrative procedures, health, purchasing, etc.), by adapting the offer to needs;
  • easier home-to-work travel;
  • more regular and reliable schedules.
And to make the bus more attractive and easier for everyone: free access
The new network, which came into service on 1 September 2018, includes 5 so-called "CHRONO" lines with a high level of service, which operate on dedicated lanes along the D601 and at Dunkirk station and which have optimal priority at intersections managed by traffic lights.
The bus service is made more readable with better identified stops and constant routes and destinations. The 5 high service level lines will operate at a frequency of 10 minutes, according to a "flat" offer, from Monday to Saturday, from 7am to 7pm and from September to June
These 5 lines are connected to other lines whose frequency is adapted to the needs of the municipalities, districts and facilities they serve:
  • at Dunkirk station, a real intermodal hub with the TER, TGV and interurban buses. This exchange centre has been completely reorganised and rationalised to promote pedestrian safety, whether they arrive by car in the 270-space car park relay, by bicycle in the 100-space secure shelter or on foot in the city centre;
  • at the ends of the agglomeration zone, at Grande-Synthe - Puythouck, for connection with the peripheral municipalities in the west of the agglomeration and at Leffrinckoucke - Fort des Dunes, for connection with the peripheral municipalities in the east of the agglomeration.
  • The urban centre, the city centre of Dunkirk, has been transformed by the project, offering more comfortable and wider pedestrian spaces in the shopping area and transforming an expressway in the middle of the city into a peaceful urban boulevard, which introduces more nature into the city and reconnects the neighbourhoods with each other.

Progress Status

Delivered

Data Reliability

Self-declared

Funding Type

Public

Sustainable Development

    The project completely redevelops the urban areas of the urban center and improves the services to the area's leisure and tourism centers. By improving the living environment of dense urban areas, it contributes to improving the attractiveness of the area.

    The project's "flagship" development consists of the transformation of an urban expressway, the D601, which crossed the city with a speed limit of 90 km / h, into a peaceful urban boulevard. This development makes it possible to reconnect neighborhoods with each other, reduce nuisances for residents (noise, pollution, etc.) and reintroduce nature into the city, including the updating of an old canal in the bed of which the Expressway was built in the 70s.

    With all the facilities, the project promotes a better sharing of public spaces between all modes. In an agglomeration center rebuilt after the last world war for the car, it was necessary to give space to the active modes and to improve the circulation of the buses.

    By improving the service to the inhabitants and in particular those of the priority neighborhoods of urban renewal, the project improves the social cohesion on our territory. Of the 150,000 inhabitants of the agglomerated zone, the old bus network served only 60,000 efficiently (with a frequency of 10 minutes maximum). The new network brought the population served efficiently to 120,000 inhabitants and The increase mainly concerns priority neighborhoods in Saint-Pol-sur-Mer and Grande-Synthe.

    Free admission also allows for greater social diversity in public transit. Indeed, the old bus network was only used by so-called "captive" users who had no other way to get around. Since the commissioning of the new network, the use has only increased and today reaches + 71% weekdays and + 145% Weekend. According to a survey carried out on buses, 48% of new users say they have abandoned the car.

    Finally, the project is part of the overhaul of the local Local Urbanism Plan, which includes a Habitat component and a displacement component (PLUiHD). The ongoing development of the PLUiHD makes it possible to cross the issues of Habitat and sustainable transport. For example, within the framework of its competences, the Urban Community of Dunkirk will concentrate its support to the land action on the areas served with efficient way by public transport.

    As mentioned in the "well-being" chapter, the project develops nature in the city with larger green spaces.

    According to the Carbon Territory 2012 report (currently being updated on 2015 data), transport-related emissions are significant: out of the 3.44 million tonnes of CO2 emitted outside the major industrial sites subject to the NAP ( 9.9% decrease compared to 2008), passenger transport accounts for 14.1% of emissions (485 000 T CO2) (an increase of 2.1% compared to 2008). Transport is also a strong emitter of nitrogen oxides (9.7% of NOx emitted by road transport) and fine particulate matter emissions (4.7% of PM10 and 6.5% for PM2.5 (balance sheet data). ATMO) Today, public road transport (buses and coaches) represents 10,012 tonnes, or 2.1% of passenger transport emissions, while they account for 5% of travel.

    The CUD has anticipated the regulatory changes and has integrated in 2011, voluntarily and experimentally, the Air component in its Climate Plan. Reducing emissions is a major public health issue. The previous data indicate that, in order to be efficient with regard to CUD's competences, it would be to favor alternatives to the private car, and thus to develop intermodality alongside the development of the attractiveness of public transport, such as recommended in the CUD Air Conditioning Climate Plan (PACET) with a progressive substitution of gasoil by the CNG, and Hythane as a less emissive fuel.

    In public works and construction contracts, economic operators were encouraged to reuse resources from earthworks and demolitions for new constructions. In addition, certain structures are made with treated granular materials, with the introduction of co-products from the metallurgical industry of the territory (ArcelorMittal steel mills).

Testimony / Feedback

    Some testimonies were collected in a report from the C-NEWS channel, the link to which is provided below.



    Another interesting article, published on the Bank of the Territories website, mentions the launch of an observatory of cities on free transport. The link is provided below. 

    http://bit.ly/2xLSv6Z


    During a major survey conducted on board buses since the commissioning in September 2018, several testimonies were collected from users.


    Users were randomly surveyed in the city centre, representative of the evolution of traffic during the day. The 2000 respondents reside in different municipalities in the urban area: - the districts and municipalities in the centre, which are well served by the network, are slightly over-represented among users compared to the population as a whole. A slightly higher proportion of residents of working-class neighbourhoods such as Saint-Pol-sur-Mer, Petite-Synthe and Dunkirk-Centre are found among the 2000 people surveyed, while slightly more outlying neighbourhoods and municipalities, although integrated into the Chrono line network, are slightly less represented than in the population. There is an under-representation of residents of Malo-les-Bains, Rosendaël and Leffrinckoucke, districts considered more favoured, among the 2000 respondents; - municipalities further from the city centre, and in particular those located after the exchange centres and benefiting from less frequent lines, are less represented than in the population.


    The effect of free access is to change the behaviour of people who potentially have the purchasing power to access a subscription or tickets and who have a


    car. For them, the price of the unit ticket was a barrier to occasional use, reinforcing the domination of the car on all their journeys:


    "In the end, even if I have the purchasing power to do so, I still find that a ticket is expensive, for a journey of about ten minutes. Psychologically, for a short trip, it remains a brake, and we take the car" (Anne-Claire, active, Malo-les-Bains)" I no longer go out with my grandchildren. Before, I didn't defraud them, I bought them tickets, but then we limited them a little because it's expensive fast. Now we walk more, we go out whenever we want, we go more often to the sea" (Michèle, active, Fort-Mardyck)


    These users highlight the complementary effects of free and efficient services, the latter allowing them to compete with the car, for people living in areas well served by Chrono lines:


    "It's a 50/50 game. Efficiency is half the way, free is the other half. Free access alone would not have worked for me" (Vincent, retired, Fort Mardyck)" I am a privileged one, I am on a Chrono line. I can see through it completely in terms of time compared to the car. When you see that at traffic lights, the bus comes first, it's an advantage over the car. " (Antoine, active, Dunkerque-Centre)


    On the other hand, free access plays a role for people with low resources who limited their use of public transport, particularly because they did not use solidarity subscriptions:


    "I'm at the RSA, I can't afford the license or the car at all. Before I was on the bus or walking, I didn't pay too much for the bus, it was stressful and when you get a 30 euro fine it hurts. And then the day tickets cost a lot of money, 3.50 by 3.50 it ends up going up. Now I'm quiet, it's not stressful. " (Tom, looking for a job, Rosendael)


    Finally, for some users, particularly the elderly with low resources, the transport ticket was already free. The renewal of the network, its new vehicles and its efficiency are appreciated by people living in urban centres:


    "I take the bus for a walk, I'm 83 years old and I don't drive anymore. I live alone so I take a bus ride, I go shopping, I make a dam... I was already free, I had the senior card, but it's much better than before! " (Simone, retired, Petite-Synthe)


    Among those who report using "much more" or "a little more" the network, 10% report having gotten rid of a vehicle or having given up buying a second one for their home. This demotion mainly concerns people living in urban centres, served by Chrono lines and where many trips can be made on foot and by bicycle, and may involve different situations: young people who delay the passage of the permit or the purchase of a car, parents who have donated or lend their vehicle to their child for an indefinite period, people who have sold a vehicle (usually the second vehicle in the household) or who have given up a purchase.


Governance

    Urban Community of Dunkirk

    Local Authority

    Several companies in the framework of public contracts

    Construction Industry

    The urban community of Dunkerque manages public spaces (excluding departmental roads) and sanitation networks. The operation of the bus network is the subject of a public service delegation

    Public

    The Transport and Sustainable Mobility policy is at the heart of the various projects led by CUD, contributing significantly to the achievement of its Sustainable Development objectives. Thus, to integrate these various issues to which mobility is linked and better understand the economy that is linked to it, a broad multi-stakeholder debate was conducted in 2014 on the Transport policy in the area. The objective was to "co-build" a new Sustainable Mobility strategy, integrated with other sectoral public policies, based on a shared diagnosis, based on evolutions and forecasts of needs and uses. This new approach to mobility governance aims to improve the efficiency and quality of services provided. The acceptability of related projects is reinforced, insofar as all stakeholders (elected representatives, residents, users, AOTs, associations ...) co-decided the choices of the different proposals that will have been made.

Sustainable Solutions

    Dk'Plus mobility - The redesign of the urban transport network of the agglomeration integrating free access

    • Mobility :

Reasons for participating in the competition(s)

  • ​A project to develop integrated public transport that goes beyond the "transport" dimension alone
  • A profound transformation of the urban area that gives a more dynamic image and makes it more attractive
  • An innovative project with free access for all

Building candidate in the category

Grand Prix Infrastructure Durable

Grand Prix Infrastructure Durable

Prix du public

Prix du public

Green Solutions Awards 2019 - Infrastructures France
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Xavier Dairaine


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Green Solutions Awards 2019 - Infrastructures France