The Compagnie des Transports Strasbourgeois (CTS, ) is the company responsible for the comprehensive public transport network of the Eurométropole de Strasbourg, the urban community of the French city of Strasbourg.
The CTS currently operates all six lines of the Tramway de Strasbourg and the bus network with the eight associated Park and Ride facilities, on behalf of the Eurométropole de Strasbourg. It also runs other services through its subsidiary Compagnie des Transports du Bas-Rhin (CTBR) and on behalf of the Conseil départemental du Bas-Rhin. These comprise 27 coach lines, of which 9 serve Strasbourg and participate in the Vélhop cycle network.
History
Establishment In 1877, the ("Strasbourg Horse Railway Company") was established. The business did not take a French name until 1884, as the (Strasbourg Tramway Company, CTS).
On 22 July 1878 the company opened its first carriage line. It continued to expand its network, with financial support from banks such as the Straehling-Valentin bank, and also the development of a local interest in the activity of the railway.
Electrification of the tram network did not start until 1894, in partnership with the town and AEG. The first lines were electrified the following year at the 1895 .
In 1900, the network ran almost fifteen lines over of route. In 1912 the city of Strasbourg became the major shareholder of the company with 51% ownership. It was the start of its status as a public-private partnership. The city also granted an exclusive contract to run the network and construct any future lines., which gave the city power to control Strasbourg's development.
World War I
The declaration of war in 1914 took most of the company's staff (over 500 men from a labour force of 540). The business resorted to hiring over 260 women to keep the network running.
Between the wars At the end of the war, the network was heavily damaged and split in two: the outer-Rhine lines were transferred to the Republic of Baden in 1922. It was during this period that the Bas-Rhin invested in the society, which was facing financial difficulties.
Although the first bus only appeared in 1928, the tramway transported over 50 million passengers during 1930. Despite that, traffic declined. The CTS turned towards tourism in 1932 with the creation of the company, with luxury touring coaches.
World War II
To address the shortage of fuel, the Trolleybus made its appearance in 1939 on the Roethig – Ostwald line. The tram network served to evacuate Strasbourg so normal service stopped. Only the suburban network continued to run, to allow adequate provisioning of the French army. But the German authorities restarted the services when they took control of the city in June 1940. During the war, the tram network was one of the only methods on transport with a peak in usage, with nearly 73 million journeys in 1943. When Strasbourg became French again, the CTS faced a crisis, with a loss of human and material resources.
After World War II After the war, the authorities considered the reconstruction of the network. Between 1940 and 1950 it replaced two tramways with trolleybuses, and turned decisively to buses thereafter. Buses would be easier for the armed forces to commandeer if war broke out again, and the company could not afford new locomotives for the network.
In 1953, the company began to replace the urban tramways with bus lines. On 1 May 1960 the tramway made its last journey on the line 4/14 (Neuhof Forest Wacken), and finished dismantling the network, work which had progressed gradually since the end of the war. Freight had not travelled by tramway since April 1958, except for manure which was transported until 1960.
In 1954, the CTS handed over the Rosheim – Saint-Nabor line (via Ottrott) to , which led to the discontinuation of passenger traffic on that line. Tourist steam locomotives continued to use the line until 1988. An 030T Borsig T3 and a postal van, both classed as Monuments Historiques, are preserved by the CTS at their Kibitzenau depot.
Network renewal
In spring 1962, the last trolleys were scrapped after circling the three lines 28 (Roethig - Ostwald), 5/15 (Place Broglie - Quartier de Quinze), and the 10 (the belt line). Dismantling the tramway caused a 20% drop in usage during the 1960s. The network was revolutionised in 1967 with the abolition of conductors. Their role was combined with that of the driver, so the drivers also collected the fares from the passengers. Reconquering the market continued with the creation of of separate bus lanes, and the introduction of articulated buses. In 1976 the single fare began, and the urban lines were extended to the whole of the Urban Community of Strasbourg.
The CTS refocused on public transport and resold ASTRA and its dedicated freight vehicles. It was one of the first transport companies to introduce an Intelligent transportation system allowing the exchange of data between the vehicles and a central command centre.
Return of the tramway
At the end of the 1980s, the municipality launched a project to add a new type of public transport. A metro system was the first choice, with the prominence of Véhicule Automatique Léger, but after the municipal elections of 1989, the new municipality decided to turn back to the tramway. The CTS were assigned to manage the project, to begin in January 1991. The Line A went into service on 26 November 1994. With an initial length of , it connected Hautepierre Maillon and Illkirch Baggersee'.
The CTS attempted to associate a multitude of services with the tramway. Since 1997, an airport shuttle bus has linked the airport with the tramway at Baggersee', cycle parks have been installed at certain stations etc. In 1998, the Line A was extended from Baggersee as far as Illkirch-Lixenbuhl, and creating the embryonic Line D, doubling the length of Line A by adding the segment Rotonde - Étoile Polygone.
Lines B and C first saw daylight in September 2000. Line B runs from Elsau and Hoenheim Station, and Line C is from Elsau to the Esplanade quarter.
A new type of ticketing was put in place in September 2004: the Badgeo card replaced the standard paper tickets on the urban routes. It was joined by an intercity network in 2006.
Grid network and new energy sources
Following the 2001 municipal elections, a new phase of network upgrades was approved. It was scheduled between 2006 and 2008, but several organisations and three individuals (including two elected Green councillors) appealed, and the work was delayed. That set of extensions did not begin until 25 August 2007 and completed in May 2008, allowing the creation of of track and of commercial lines.
In December 2008, the first phase of the tram-train went into service, and the CTS stopped the airport shuttle, which was replaced by the TER Alsace's new service.
At the end of 2008, the CTS launched an experiment with a hybrid articulated bus: a Solaris Urbino 18. This circled on Line 6 along with the diesel buses, allowing performance comparisons between the two engine types. After a year of circulation, the company judged the tests inconclusive and announced that it would not be acquiring further hybrid vehicles.
On 27 November 2010, the tramway network was upgraded with the creation of Line F between Elsau and the Place d'Islande and foreshadowing the tram-train, and Line C added a new segment from the station Gare Centrale to Neuhof Rudolphe Reuss. At the end of 2010, the city and the CTS filed a project to create a pneumatic tramway on the Wolfisheim – Vendenheim route via Strasbourg in the 2nd call for busway projects for Grenelle II This plan was widely criticised by local associations, residents, and the municipality opposition.
In parallel with the announcement of abandoning hybrid fuel, the company decided to continue buying vehicles running on natural gas. So, in November 2011, the Cronenbourg depot, which did not have facilities to accommodate natural gas buses, simultaneously equipped and put into circulation 30 gas Irisbus Citelis buses.
Corporate structure
Share capital The company capital (€5m) is shared: 52.4% by the Communauté urbaine de Strasbourg (CUS) 23.3% by the Conseil général du Bas-Rhin 12.5% by the private company Transdev
Other minor shareholders include the Caisse des dépôts et consignations (parent company of Transdev) and Électricité de Strasbourg.
The board is more than 80% controlled by local collectives. Major board members select the chairman of the board: currently Roland Ries (Senator-Mayor of Strasbourg), the vice-president of the CUS since May 2008.
Workforce On 31 December 2010, the workforce numbered including 971 drivers, compared to employees (of which 935 were urban driver-conductors and 116 suburban) at 31 December 2003.
Financial structure
A new range of fares was introduced in July 2010. Called the , it recognises income splitting, but applies only to season tickets paid by subscription. The versement transport (VT) in the CUS has been fixed at 2% since 1 January 2011 (being 1.75% before).
In 2009, total expenses came to and income , allowing a profit at fiscal year end of ( in 2008). Of the whole provision, revenue represented only , or 31.6%, and this included the receipts from the territorial collectivities. The lump sum contribution of local (direct subsidiary) collectives brought in , or 24.6%, and transfer charges , or 21.0% of income.
All in all, the income from the CUS and the Department of Bas-Rhin came to around , including income from the VT reversed back into the CTS. But in 2009, assets included the suburban network, which today is run by a sister company, the CTBR. On the urban network, directly received commercial receipts from passengers amounted to no more than per trip.
Network
Tramway lines
The current Strasbourg tramway network opened on 25 November 1994, serving the Urban Community of Strasbourg. It has six lines, totalling more than of track, and of route (some routes sharing track in the city centre). It is the second longest tramway network in France, after the Lyon tramway.
It was the first tramway network in France to have low-floor trams. Rolling stock consists of 53 Eurotrams (manufactured by Bombardier Transportation), later augmented by 41 Alstom Citadis cars of a similar general design to the Eurotram. Strasbourg's tramway network, unlike those of some other towns and cities in France, is more of a grid (rather than being hub and spoke). In the city centre, all tracks are shared by at least two lines, and three lines share the tracks between the stations of Homme de Fer and Observatoire, which makes for easy interchange and increases service frequency in the city centre.
+ Line Route Provider Parc des Sports - GraffenstadenCTS Lingolsheim Tiergaertel - Hoenheim Gare Gare Centrale - Neuhof Rodolphe Reuss Poteries - Kehl Rathaus Roberstau L'Escale - Campus d'Illkirch Wolfisheim Henri Rendu - Place d'Islande
Bus and shuttle routes
The Urban Community of Strasbourg bus network covers the entire area, and also serves the town of Kehl in Germany, opposite the Rhine from Strasbourg, via the Europe Bridge. There are more than twenty bus and shuttle routes. Most are operated by the CTS, but some are subcontracted to local companies. The network is integrated into the tramway lines, and does not go into the most central part of the city, which is reserved for pedestrians and trams.
The last major review of the system happened with the extensions to the tramway network in August 2007. A study looking at the entire bus system is scheduled for 2013.
Compagnie des transports du Bas-Rhin