The environmentalist delegation, in a letter this Monday, asked the president of the European Metropolis of Lille to reimburse users’ subscriptions. Since the discovery of asbestos on metro trains last July, traffic has reportedly been seriously disrupted.
“We are requesting a refund of all or part of the subscriptions,” declared the environmentalist delegation in a letter addressed this Monday to the president of the European Metropolis of Lille, Damien Castelain.
“Since this summer and following the ‘discovery’ of asbestos on the metro trains, the quality of the services provided by Ilévia/Kéolis has continued to deteriorate. Line 2 is particularly impacted but, as a knock-on effect, all flows on the metro network are disrupted,” denounces the environmentalist delegation.
Faced with this, Franck Garçon, CEO of Ilévia, announced on September 5 a return to normal on line 1 at the end of the month and on All Saints’ Day on line 2. He specified that nearly a quarter of the fleet had already been put back into service, i.e. a metro frequency of two minutes on line 1 and two minutes 50 on line 2.
“Reimbursement from July 1, 2024”
However, nothing has changed, according to the environmentalist delegation. “At the start of the 2024 school year, it is clear that using the metro is still an obstacle course for many users. Anger and incomprehension are growing. The crisis of confidence is growing. The silence of the MEL, the organizing authority for mobility within the MEL perimeter, is deafening,” it says.
Faced with Illévia’s refusal to make a commercial gesture despite the users’ petition, the environmentalist delegation called in this letter for the reimbursement of subscriptions.
“Mr President, as the granting authority, we ask you to contact Ilévia/Kéolis as soon as possible and to enforce all the clauses in the concession contract that allow users to be compensated. We are asking, along with the users who have launched a petition, for a refund of all or part of the subscriptions since 1 July 2024 and a freeze on all price increases planned for this year and next year by Ilévia/Kéolis. This is the price to pay to rebuild the bond of trust between users and their transport network,” she argues.
