On-demand transport is being postponed in these municipalities of Loire-Atlantique, we tell you why

The announcement displeased Crossac. By calling into question the T5 bus line, more precisely the branch linking Donges to Missillac (and passing through Crossac and Sainte-Reine),Users feared for their travel. The mayor, Olivier Demarty, took up this question at the end of 2024 when he learned that despite the disagreement of the commune, the Pays de la Loire Region had confirmed to the community of communes of the Pays de Pontchâteau, this elimination project, for the implementation in July 2025 of transport on demand (TAD).

On-demand transport to the T5 Pontchâteau line

As there were not enough users, the project was to remove the ramifications of the T5 line by switching to on-demand transport and to keep the main T5 line Pontchâteau/Saint-Nicolas-de-Redon on which users would be brought. We can understand this logic. But this poses a fundamental problem with mobility in small towns, with two or three collection points and especially when you have to get there from the villages.

The mayor, having questioned the users, therefore proposed a list of grievances to the town hall. Around twenty testimonies were collected with various profiles (elderly people, students, high school students) and for some the bus was the only travel solution.

Too expensive a project

Except that since the end of the year, things have changed…in a good way for Crossac.

Car lThe demands of the regional budget have been there and economic calculations too.

Finally, you have to find €100 million in the budget. It was therefore decided not to make any changes to the map. On-demand transport is postponed until 2026 and the changes must be reworked with the municipalities concerned and the Comcom du pays de Pontchâteau which has mobility competence, without being the organizing authority.

Wider time slots

The elected official who has experience of these TAD deployments in other territories in Loire-Atlantique supports the relevance of this new service, open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day included in a subscription (instead of 2 trips -returns per day to Saint-Nazaire today), and the possibility of booking for a month every day to Saint-Nazaire, “with one or two fixed times, practical for students whose schedules change during the week”, adds Julien Bainvel.

And the regional elected official underlines the “flexibility” of the system which avoids sometimes having to run vehicles empty. Despite everything, if it works well elsewhere and brings in a new audience, on-demand transportation costs more.

A project to rework

For Stéphane Poilvé, responsible for mobility at Comcom du Pays de Pontchâteau, this suspension will allow improvements to be put back on the table requested by local elected officials.

The TAD must remain complementary to the current T5 line, and not replace it. The existing branches of the T5 must preserve territorial equity and guarantee efficient service.

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According to him, the attendance figures on which the TAD project is based date from 2020a year marked by confinements linked to the pandemic, “this biases the analysis”.

Among the disadvantages, extended travel times from TAD stopping points: “The transfer to a T5 stopping point lengthens journeys and penalizes users. A transfer to the place called 6 Croix in Donges had been requested for users of Crossac or, failing that, to Besné to avoid them having to return to Pontchâteau. »

“We need flexibility”

The current TAD offers a door-to-door service to all residents of the area, which tomorrow will only concern those over 75 or those with disabilities.

The TAD cannot replace a regular line like the T5 :

Rework the subject, yes. Make people want to take public transport, especially among the youngest, of course, but flexibility is needed… And the Region told us that high school students were not concerned.

And the elected official asked for more timing, particularly on the Pontchâteau-Saint-Nazaire portion. “Will the number of breakpoints be retained? » also asks Stéphane Poilvé.

Like the mayor of Crossac, he expects progress on future discussions and puts forward the idea of ​​alternatives with other partners such as Saint-Nazaire agglo so that residents have more facilities to travel differently to this living area. .

“And it will then be necessary to define the distribution keys for financing,” slips Stéphane Poilvé.

In any case, this leaves one year to review the copy.

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