95c | ISSUE 14 | SEPTEMBER 2012
PUBLISHERS OF
NEWS, WHAT’S ON INFO FOR AUDE, GARD, HERAULT, LOZERE, PYRENEES-ORIENTALES
Confusion and anger over new tram route by SAMANTHA DAVID
LANGUEDOC WINE MAKERS KEEP FINGERS CROSSED Page 7
AN extension to Montpellier’s city tram network is causing confusion and frustration among many passengers who claim the routes are too slow and unreliable. Since the inauguration of Lines 3 and 4 – built at a cost of €530million – delays, mis-information, and breakdowns have seen tempers flare and police called in to calm passengers. Earlier this summer, TaM, which runs public transport in Montpellier, gave away 12,000 cups of coffee and croissants to passengers to “thank them for their patience” faced with a multitude of problems. The tramway has been dubbed the slowest in France, partly because the automatic signalling is so unreliable that the drivers repeatedly have to get out of their trams and change the signals manually. The tram has also been limited to travelling at only 10kph in some areas. However, the most common complaint is that Line 3 was supposed to connect the Languedoc capital to the sea. New users taking the tram expecting to end up at the beach have been disappointed that it stops 2km away from the coast
Photo: Montpellier Sud Reportage pour TaM
RIVER rats are thriving in the Camargue and the Hérault - so much so that rangers are having to work all year round to keep their booming numbers down. Coypu are native to America but have spread across Europe as a result of deliberate releases and animals escaping from fur farms. The colonies in the area enjoy the isolated, marshy landscape which gives them plenty of space for swimming, digging and constructing underground tunnels which can run to up to 7km long. The problem in France is that the coypu’s natural predators have either been exterminated (wolves) or are not native (crocodiles). Apart from trappers and hunters, the main threat to the river rat population is being hit on the road and many are killed this way. However, the road death toll is not sufficient to keep the population down. Coypu breed all year round, producing up to three litters of seven young each time. They cause nuisance because in the Camargue they eat the roots of the bamboo plants, which are also a favourite treat for the famous white horses. They also destroy riverbanks by tunnelling under them extensively.Î Turn to page 4
Photo: Louise Hurren
Mass cull to stop Hérault river rats
Line 3: does not take passengers to beach in a run-down area in Pérols, on the edge of a busy roundabout. After a 25-minute ride from the city centre, travellers have to take a bicycle, pony or bus to reach the seaside. Î Turn to page 2
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