Jean-Michel Aulas hasn't laced up his boots for the municipal campaign yet, but he's already lining up the...decisive media moves. This Thursday, June 5th, the former boss of OL makes a bold statement by proposing free public transport in Lyon for all residents with a monthly net income not exceeding 2,500 euros. A gesture he considers "simple, fair, and useful," estimated to cost 30 million euros per year, and funded without any tax increase, he promises with a pledge. According to him, the budget could be balanced by cutting down on communication, events, and duplicate programs. The result: nearly 100,000 Lyon residents could benefit from this.
A utopian project but achievable?
However, this spectacular announcement comes right at the moment when the regional audit office's report on Sytral Mobilities raises a red flag. The organization managing TCL plans to invest 6.4 billion euros over the next decade, an ambitious bet that the CRC supports… as long as new funding sources are found. And certainly not to lose any. Because in Lyon,users already cover more than 50% of the operating costs of the network, whereas the national average is around 30%. So, it’s pretty tough to offer more free tickets without throwing the whole system out of balance.
If Aulas dreams of being the captain of a social and ambitious project, he will have to face a budget reality that’s much rougher than the grass at Groupama. We’ll have to wait and see if he’ll soon move from the sidelines to the electoral race, or if he’ll just keep stirring the pressure... before the kickoff!
