CDG Express back on track

On 28 April, we witnessed a judicial about-turn in the tortuous case of the future CDG Express. The Paris Administrative Court of Appeal has thus overturned a previous ruling, validating the work on this fast - because non-stop - railway line from 24 km which should link theRoissy-CDG airport and the Paris-Est station. When the case was referred to it by the State, it rejected the opponents' arguments, stating that ". the project is justified by a overriding public interest allowing derogations from the provisions of article L. 411-1 of the Environment Code concerning the protection of animal species" . The case was originally referred to the administrative court by the Communist mayor of Mitry-Mory, Charlotte Blandio-Faride, who was opposed to the planned 4.4 km line through her municipality on the grounds of protecting the environment. biodiversity. The administrative court in Montreuil (Seine-Saint-Denis) ruled in his favour, halting the works in November 2020. The judges ruled that the CDG Express was not essential to improve services to the airport hub due to the existence of RER line B and the collapse in air traffic following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Combining SNCF Réseau, ADP Group and Banque des Territoires (Caisse des Dépôts group), the consortium contracted to build and operate the line was nevertheless able to resume work on the project, which is expected to cost a total of 2.2 billion euros. In a ruling handed down in March 2021, the Administrative Court of Appeal had already suspended the enforcement of the Montreuil Administrative Court's judgement.

Not operational for the Paris 2024 Olympics

Contrary to the judgment handed down on 9 November 2020, this time the Court considers that ". the project aims to improve public transport links to the airport, relieve congestion on the existing network, enhance the attractiveness of the Paris region and facilitate interconnections between different modes of transport" . The return to 2019 passenger traffic levels could also take place in 2024 or 2025 i.e. just before the opening of the CDG Express.

The numerous appeals and initial procrastinations over the choice of route have meant that the project has been considerably delayed, with the CDG Express missing out on the Paris 2024 Olympic Games with a commissioning now scheduled for early 2027 if there are no further derailments in the timetable. A ruling on the merits of the case could still be handed down by the Cour de Cassation. If this infrastructure project goes ahead - which seems most likely given the progress of the works - a train will provide the link every quarter of an hour in each direction, the journey being made in 20 minutes from 5am to midnight, 7 days a week. The rate will be 24 euros one way.