You can be one of the richest countries in the world with a staggering density of luxury cars... and still dream of having a metro. That's what the Principality of Monaco which wants to relieve traffic congestion in its area. The current TER line, operated by the SNCF on the Grasse-Cannes-Nice-Monaco-Vintimille route, is often saturated. As a result, many users - occasional visitors, business travellers and French nationals working in the Principality - continue to favour the car.
The Principality of Monaco therefore wishes to equip itself with a metro system. However, its main function would in fact be to link a gigantic car park on the outskirts of the Principality to the centre. Car park with around 3,500 spaces would significantly reduce traffic in the town. The car park will be located at "La Brasca" in the communes of Èze and La Turbie. It would also include the passenger stationA maintenance centre for future trains and a logistics distribution zone.
The future metro line will initially comprise a single station in the town centre. The authorities are considering locating it between the Place d'Armes, near the La Condamine market, and the Charles III block. The latter, on the edge of Cap-d'Ail to the west of the Principality, is the last large area of land in the Principality still to be built on.
A metro that could go further in France and Italy
A priori, the type of metro chosen would be automatic rolling stock, with an initial capacity of 2,400 passengers per hour in each direction. However, capacity could be increased to 3,600 passengers. In particular with the the possibility of extending this metro line to Menton and Ventimiglia in Italy as well as further west in France. These extensions could also include other resorts in Monaco. They may be included in the presentation of candidates for the project.
Implementation of the project will be subject to the prior signature of a bilateral agreement between France and Monaco. Applicants have until February 2025 to submit their applications. Planned investment: €1.2 billion -2024 with a contribution to be defined by the French government. With a target of 6 to 8 years between signing the contract with the future concessionaire and commissioning...
Until then, SNCF is improving the frequency of its trains from 15 December onwards. It promises trains every 15 minutes between Cannes and Menton, including Nice and Monaco. That's 20,000 extra seats a day on a route that is also very popular with business travellers - particularly during trade fairs and conferences in the Principality.
Monaco station is one of the largest on the Côte d'Azur, just behind Nice. In 2023 it recorded over 8 million passengers.
