On our second full day in Paris, some of us had the opportunity to visit RATP (Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens – English: Autonomous Operator of Parisian Transports), the headquarters for the metro system in Paris.
While of course most well-known for their operation of the Paris metro, RATP also works on buses, trams, rapid transit, and inter-city rail services all over the world, spanning over every continent except for Australia and Antarctica. In the U.S., they manage Open Loop New York (hop on hop off tours), Sun Link in Arizona, McDonald Transit Associates which includes Washington D.C. and Austin, and the Fullington Auto Bus Company in the northeast.
The buildings for the headquarters was pretty neat! Out front, they had an old Metropolitan sign that used to mark the metro stops around Paris (and some can still be seen around town today!). Inside, they had a huge fountain with a sand map of Paris. They also had a variety of old train carts, showcasing some metro history.
The presentation for RATP was incredibly interesting. They gave us free DVDs with a movie about the metro which was cool!
At this visit we not only learned more about the RATP’s involvement in different transit systems across the world, but we also learned about new technology being implemented in the trains. There are some driverless lines being added to Paris, and the conductors of those trains can choose to either work on a different line, or work at the headquarters managing the trains from a computer. Many lines are getting new barriers to prevent people from falling onto the tracks, increasing safety of the metro. A lot of the trains are also getting video cameras in the cars, so if there is an emergency and a person presses a button, they would be able to video chat with an actual operator who can see the situation and help out.
Especially since we used the metro so much in Paris, it was great being able to see the inner workings of the headquarters. I was able to point out so many random metro facts afterwards, and it was really cool knowing the technology behind the scenes of the transportation network. I am glad I got the opportunity to go on the RATP visit, and would highly recommend it!
By: 2015 Forum-Nexus alumna, J. Michelle Abuda