The Transport Infrastructure Master Plan (SDIT): a planning tool designed for the citizens

Elody Desry is Deputy Director General of the Directorate for the Transport Infrastructure Master Plan (TIMP) in charge of implementing the Plan. She joined Lille Metropole on December 13, 2021. Elodie Desry is an engineer in urban engineering. She worked for more than 10 years in the public establishment of the Société du Grand Paris. This establishment is the contracting authority for the Grand Paris Express project. The goal is to create 4 new metro lines around Paris to serve the inner and outer suburbs. In this context, Elodie Desry followed each stage of the project: consultation, studies and the completion of the work.

The Grand Paris Express is to Paris what the SDIT is to Lille Metropole : a structuring project whose ambition is to accompany the dynamism of the territoriy.

50 km of new tramway lines will be created throughout the metropolis, serving 16 additional cities, and 25 km of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) will serve 10 additional cities. Beyond a transportation project, this is a real lever for urban development and regional planning. To measure the scope of the project, here's a figure: nearly 180,000 trips per day will be made once the lines are in service.

In terms of the timetable, an initial public consultation was held from February 21 to April 5, 2022. The goal was to stabilize the routes of the lines in preparation for the June Metropolitan Council. The council's deliberation in June will formalize the future lines’ shape. The year 2022 will then be devoted to consolidating the project programs and continuing the studies. Then, the first public inquiries will be launched in 2024, before the lines are gradually brought into service between 2028 and 2035.

The SDIT is based on several emblematic projects: the tramway of the Roubaix-Tourcoing metropolitan area, the tramway of Lille and its suburbs, as well as the BRT lines from Lille to Villeneuve d'Ascq and from Villeneuve d'Ascq to Marcq-en-Baroeul. Concerning this last project, several elements are to be noted. First of all, a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) has 4 main characteristics: a high frequency of passage, a mostly exclusive right-of-way route and priority at intersections, clean energy rolling stock, accessible and welcoming stations. Between Villeneuve d'Ascq and Marcq-en-Baroeul, the BRTs will be deployed over 11.1 km between the Pierre Mauroy Stadium and Saint-André-lez-Lille. They will serve five municipalities as well as the EuraTechnologies, Lille Grand Palais, Stade Pierre Mauroy and Lille 1 University hubs. Finally, these lines will be connected with the two existing metro and tramway lines as well as the future tramway line joining Saint-André-lez-Lille.