The transportation system

by Joi Officer

The transportation system in Paris is efficient. The metro, train, and bus are punctual and you arrive at your destination.

While in Paris, we have been riding the metro, bus, and train, to and from interviews. It has been a great way for us to save money and familiarize ourselves with their public transportation system.
In Paris, people are able to travel just about anywhere without hesitation and with ease. The bus runs regularly as well as the metro and train.

This is great and all, but what about the people who don’t live in Paris? The public transportation does not extend past the Paris borderline. How are they supposed to get around their community? Unfortunately, there seems to be no definite answer to this question.

However, I believe that the transportation in the suburbs is not developed because the government doesn’t see the suburbs as a big issue. It’s Paris first, suburbs second. This week, we walked for about 40 minutes to get from Gargon to Clichy-sous-Bois and experienced first hand the travel challenges that some of the suburban residents face every day. Residents from this suburban travel two hours to get to Paris, which is 9.8 miles (15.8 km) from their homes.

Fortunately, the government has decided to develop a transportation system in Paris called the Grande Paris Plan. It will provide suburban residents with easy access their from  communities into Paris and within the suburban neighborhoods.

When the new transportation system is put in place, I believe that it will improve the relationship between residents in the suburbs and Paris as well as the relationship between residents in the different suburbs. Young people will see that the government is taking some initiative to help them. With ease of travel between the suburbs, youth in the suburbs can be exposed to the different suburbs around them.

Although Paris has a well-developed transportation system, that is not enough. One of our translators from Bondy explained that the government was working “slowly but surely” to improve the quality of transportation in the suburbs. The government has made promises to its residents in the suburbs, so the only question now is when it will start.