Français
Walking: a key element in mobility
Walking is an integral part of mobility. Every passenger has to walk at some point. RATP intends to make it as easy as possible for them to do so.
Its environments are designed with pedestrians in mind, and walking is very much part of its all-encompassing approach to urban mobility.
Making life safer for pedestrians...
Growing congestion in urban areas and increasingly scarce public funding for transport, as well as health issues, are causing many people to rediscover the oldest form of travel: walking.
Studies of urban walking raise questions about public and individual transport provision as a whole: a model comparing mechanised transport with walking shows the enormous potential of walking for short journeys. London has paid considerable attention to walking conditions in its efforts to improve the efficiency of its public transport networks in preparation for the 2012 Olympics.
RATP is approaching the question of urban walking from two angles:
- Multimodality: walking as a way of accessing public transport networks and a good solution for the first or last 100 metres of a journey;
- Intermodality: walking as a way of getting from one mode of transport to another (metro, bus, RER, etc.), involving journeys of 600-800 m per day on average.
RATP and Paris City Council are also working together to improve the safety of pedestrians in public environments. This project, funded by the Fonds de Sécurité Routière (road safety fund) raises the question of relations between pedestrians and buses. The Highway Code will be adapted to take account of the advances made in pedestrian safety, which are based on the simple principle that priority should be given to protecting the weakest – that is to say: pedestrians must take precedence over cars and buses.
