Study tour on rail transport for an Ecuadorian delegation in Lyon, Paris and Grenoble

As part of a partnership between the French Ministry of Ecological and Solidarity Transition (MTES), the Ecuadorian Ministry of Transport and Public Works (MTOP) and AFD, CODATU organized a study trip for a delegation of the MTOP in Paris, Lyon and Grenoble from 19 to 23 November.

The trip focused on rail transport (guided transport: metro, tram, train …), with particular attention to (i) French standards and regulations, (ii) the process of setting up such systems (planning, construction, supervision, management, choice of technology etc.) and (iii) governance (structuring and operation of an AOM), in connection with the current projects in Ecuador:

• the “Tren Playero”, national rail project planned to connect the 3 coastal provinces (Guayas, Santa Elena, Manabi), from Daule to Manta (248 miles);
• the Quito metro, which the 22km line is under construction and is expected to open in 2019;
• the Guayaquil cable, between Guayaquil and Duran to provide access across the Guayas river (ongoing studies);
• the Cuenca tramway, first tram in Ecuador, which is scheduled to open in March 2019.

The week was organised so the delegation can meet and exchange with as much French skateholders as possible, start to enact the regulatory framework necessary for the smooth running of the projects mentioned above and think about the impact in terms of intermodality and governance. They met the MTES, Ile-de-France Mobilités, the RATP, SYSTRA, EGIS, the SNCF, the CEREMA, the GART, the STRMTG (Technical Service of the Lifts and Guided Transports) and the SMTC (Mixed Association of Public Transport) in Grenoble.