Earlier this month, the city of Shenyang launched 3 new tram lines, according to LesEchos, having signed a contract with RATP and Transdev joint venture RATP dev. With another three lines set to launch soon, the new metro system is set to 65 metro stations, which will cover 70 Km and the transportation of 7.2 Million inhabitants. The French company has gotten quite comfortable doing business in Asia; the article reports that it has previously signed contracts in Hong Kong, Seoul, Nankin, Macao, all for public transportation (metro & bus) projects.
This comes just months after Hollande called for China to invest more in France(fr), at a time where most French businesses are suffering, having outsourced most of their industrial work to China or its neighbors. The latest contract will bring in 41 Million euros over 3 years,
As France looks to come out of its lingering recession, exporting its expertise to foreign countries will continue to prove to be a source of economic growth. France has always been ahead of its time when it comes to urban planning and social projects – the country famously developed the fastest trains and had the most active train line in the world (the RER A) up until the past 10 years. The Groupe Bolloré, who manages the “Autolib” electric cars available within the city of Paris, recently signed a contract with the city of Indianapolis, marking the first steps in its international expansion.
It’s not the ability to supply cars, trains, and rails that have encouraged Asian and North American cities to jump on board (thought it certainly does help), but the knowledge and expertise in urban planning and integration of the technology into the city that has ultimately been the success of the Paris metro, Autolib, Velib & other public transportation projects in France.