Bordeaux Metropole

Bordeaux, being a proud trading centre from the past, is a city with a remote position in France during the last decades. It serviced a vast area in the Aquitaine region. And of course it is the capital of the Bordeaux wine industry. Over the last two decades Bordeaux has revitalized and given new identity to its fine historic centre through the construction of 47 km of tram network and associated public realm design. In 2017 the high-speed rail to Paris (2 hrs) will be completed, with a second phase to Madrid (3.5 hrs) in 2020. The construction of the tram system has given confidence in the role that transport investment can have in stimulating the economy and improving the quality of the environment.

Also for Bordeaux there are serious reason for growth. The migration from the countryside to the city has caused and still causes a growing demand for new dwellings in the Bordeaux metropolitan region. And to remain a player on the economic field Bordeaux has to express its assets and give way for businesses to settle in Bordeaux.

Therefore, the second phase reflecting the national connectivity of the city, is a station redevelopment site and regeneration of the surrounding markets and waterfront, combined with a plan for 50,000 homes associated with the expansion of the tram network, and used as a catalyst to re- envision and create identifiable places in the low density, car focussed, metropolitan hinterland. Amongst the big challenges that Bordeaux faces are ‘weaving in’ 50.000 dwellings into the scattered suburban structure surrounding the centre of Bordeaux addressing the growth, and connecting them to the city centre by new transport links. Higher density in these new nodes is necessary for a feasible public transport system but also for the making of meaningful places such as sub centers within the urban sprawl. Bringing in the TGV link from Paris helps putting Bordeaux on the map as a European regional centre. The final effort is to link the (inter)national connection with the local transport system.

Link to the presentation given at LCP Event 2012

LCP Bordeaux june 2012s