“Some elected officials tell us:” What is the point of spending millions to save three minutes? “Friday morning, Crissier’s trustee, Stéphane Rezso, teamed up with his counterparts in Renens and Prilly to defend a flagship mobility project: redevelopment of 3km of road on the three communes in order to accommodate the bus with high level of service (BHNS).
Rightly or wrongly, it has often been presented as a fast line, because it has priority over the rest of the road traffic. But with a gain of three minutes over the entire journey compared to line 9, which it must replace, the BHNS must also claim other advantages. The stakes are high, because for this project, three municipal councils are called to vote investment credits of 22million in total, knowing that the Canton and the Confederation provide 18 million grants. It will be in March.
“It’s not only the journey time,” defended Tinetta Maystre, municipal in charge of Works in Renens. The BHNS will also make this line of public transport more reliable and comfortable. “Samuel Fréchet, planning manager within the Transports publics lausannois, who will operate the line, abounds:” This will guarantee a better regularity of the service. In addition, while line 9 is currently running at seven and a half minutes, the new line will allow up to five minutes. “
The capacities of the line will therefore be strengthened, but not only through the rates. They will increase by around 10% thanks to double articulated buses capable of accommodating up to 150 passengers. “While 6 to 7 million people take bus 9 each year, the BNHS will transport 12 to 13 million,” says Samuel Fréchet.
New roundabouts
What will we finance with 40 million? The main aim will be to rehabilitate 3.1 km of road, between the Huttins stop, in Prilly, and the future BHNS terminus, the Bré stop, in front of the Crissier municipal administration. On the majority of the section, this will allow buses to travel on a reserved lane, separate from that of other vehicles. In addition to the widening of the roadway, which involves the acquisition of land for some 20 residents, it is notably planned to arrange the stops, install a sound-absorbing coating, improve public lighting and plant new trees. .
Above all, the project includes the creation of six roundabouts, including five on existing crossroads, which will have the distinction of being pierced by a path allowing the BHNS to go straight. They will be fitted with lights to give priority to buses, as everywhere else on the section. Will this have a negative impact on traffic? “There will be no reduction in capacity for the vehicles,” assures Stéphane Rezso. According to Tinetta Maystre, the redevelopment project even takes into account the evolution of road traffic by 2030.
If elected municipal officials give the green light, work could, in the best of cases, start this year and be completed after two and a half years. But this political test may not be the only challenge for the BHNS. Following the public inquiry into the project in 2017, nine oppositions were maintained. In addition, seven agreements have yet to be reached with owners of plots affected by the works. Procedures and remedies are not excluded.
Created: 25.01.2020, 11h31
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