Paris (Île-de-France), report
“ Stop filming ! » The index finger pointed at a journalist BFMTV, a security guard steps forward, frowning. Sandrine Rousseau intervenes and, using diplomacy, declines her position as parliamentarian. Behind them, a few days earlier, a floating platform was moored at the Quai d’Austerlitz, in the XIIIᵉ district of Paris.
Concealed by a sheet metal fence and pylons covered in graffiti, the construction site would go almost unnoticed. Questioned on the fly by environmental activists, the workers mention “ a confidential project ». Confidential ? Not quite. The appearance of this structure bears a close resemblance to a highly contested – and never publicly validated – vertiport project. In other words, a take-off and landing zone… for flying taxis.
In June 2023, Reporterre takes you to the heart of the international aeronautics and space show at Le Bourget. The creators of these aircraft called eVTOL then unveiled their jewels to wealthy aficionados. Halfway between the drone and the helicopter, these prototypes designed to fly over large cities over short distances embodied an uninhibited techno-solutionism. Their marketing promise ? A life without traffic jams.
In the aisles of the Ile-de-France airport, around ten manufacturers jostled together. Among them, the German Volocopter already showed the ambition to obtain authorization to inaugurate the first flights in the summer of 2024, during the Paris Olympic Games. A plan immediately supported by the president of Île-de-France, Valérie Pécresse, who promised to invest more than a million euros for the commissioning of these futuristic taxis. From then on, the Quai d’Austerlitz became the target of the Aéroports de Paris group (ADP), declared project owner.
“ A whim of an elected official »
“ This project is a whim of an elected official, a nameless absurditydeplores ecologist Sandrine Rousseau. Only the rich will benefit, but all residents will pay the repercussions. » Starting with the noise of the eighteen small electric motors propelling these aircraft: “ The Paris town hall is working to reduce noise, and now we are being forced to use helicopters in the city.annoys Anne-Claire Boux, the deputy in charge of public health. L’WHO assures that noise pollution, by disrupting sleep and causing anxiety, is the second Source of morbidity. »
Contacted by Reporterrethe group ADP retorts that “ noise measurements carried out at the Pontoise aerodrome revealed an emissions level of 65 decibels, below that of a conventional bus: the eVTOL is four times less noisy than a helicopter ». However, in early autumn 2023, the Environmental Authority (AE) declared the impact study delivered by the public company incomplete. This was content to analyze only the impact of the construction site while turning a blind eye to the side effects, such as the impact on biodiversity or the security issue: “ Paris being a zone without the possibility of emergency landing, this greatly raises questions »also notes Dan Lert, deputy in charge of Ecological Transition at Paris City Hall.
Elected environmentalists, here along the Quai d’Austerlitz in Paris, are strongly opposed to the circulation of these flying taxis.
© Emmanuel Clévenot / Reporterre
If these taxis fly on electricity and not on fossil fuels, their energy consumption does not tip in their favor in the balance. That of the Volocity, the only prototypes likely to be certified for the Olympic Games, is, in terms of the number of passengers, thirty times greater than that of a metro – and almost four times that of a thermal car.
On February 2, the investigating commissioner Jean-François Lavillonnière in turn came to spoil the party, by formulating an unfavorable opinion on the issuance of the ministerial authorization. He particularly deplored a lack of relevance for the general interest, expressing doubts about the contribution of these machines to relieving road traffic congestion.
Sandrine Rousseau: “ Only the rich will benefit [de ce projet]but all residents will pay the repercussions. »
© Emmanuel Clévenot / Reporterre
Faced with this barrage of criticism, the project could have disappeared from the radar. However, on February 20, the boss ofADPAugustin de Romanet, declared on the set of BFMTV be “ almost sure to have approval to transport non-paying passengers ». Only a few elected officials, journalists and athletes could experience it during the Olympic Games.
Information confirmed on April 4 in the columns of Figarodisplaying: “ The Volocity will fly well in Paris during the Olympic Games ». By using the conditional, the media also revealed that connections would be provided three to five times a day between four vertiports… “ And probably a fifth: a barge on the Seine opposite the Austerlitz station. »
The floating platform supposed to accommodate flying taxis, Quai d’Austerlitz in Paris.
© Emmanuel Clévenot / Reporterre
“ Why so much persistence ? Authorizations have never been granted, opinions are unfavorabledenounces Charlotte Nenner, environmental advisor to the Île-de-France Region. ADP passes by force with complete impunity. » This ostrich strategy evokes that used by the promoters of Greater Paris: in September 2021, they razed the allotment gardens of Aubervilliers to build a solarium intended to accommodate athletes during the international competition. However, ten months later, the courts invalidated these demolitions. A bitter-tasting victory for gardeners.
Without any validation having been made public, the promoters of flying taxis are therefore moving forward headlong. Near Reporterrethe group ensures that “ the installation of the structure does not prejudge possible State authorization » : “ But we need to be ready in case it falls as the Olympics approach. » He is pointing out that “ the barge installation is temporary and will be removed at the end of the year ».
For her part, if Valérie Pécresse maintains her course, she is more feverish than before. On May 15, in a Senate hearing, she multiplied the untruths, assuring that “ these collective shuttles » would welcome “ eight to ten people » : “ The goal is to be able to transport passengers for the cost of a taxi, and remove eight cars from the road. The economic model therefore does not consist of transporting well-off people who take their jet to Le Bourget. » Rather, she said, “ the wealthy middle classes ».
Transportation of the future
Contrary to what she claimed, the Volocity only have a capacity for two people… including one place for the pilot. In other words, it is not a question of removing eight cars from the A1 motorway – which Valérie Pécresse aims to relieve – but only one. “ She sells us taxis as the transport of the futureadds Sandrine Rousseau. However, the future is the metro and the RER. And just a stone’s throw from here, lines B, C and D are in great difficulty and lack investment. »
The argument of the President of the Region is also in complete rupture with that of the group ADP. He tells us: “ In no case does this project aim to transport wealthy people from Paris to surrounding airports. The primary objective is to respond to health uses, linked to emergencies. » It ensures Reporterre to work “ in partnership with theAP–HP around a protocol which aims to compare the travel times of the aircraft with that of a classic ambulance, in a dense urban environment ». Difficult to imagine, for the moment, in a two-seater taxi.
In the eyes of elected officials, the promoters’ objective is clear: this full-scale experiment must offer a commercial showcase during the Olympic Games, with a view to widespread deployment in the future. A question also raised for algorithmic surveillance. The boss ofADP, Augustin de Romanet, makes no secret of it. Always in front of the cameras BFMTVhe assured that these machines would fly “ by the thousands, even tens of thousands, in the 2030s ». A science fiction story about to conquer reality.
