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The wonder of Mont-Saint-Michel: is it possible to streamline the management of such a popular tourist site?
Yves LALAUT - Deputy director of the DDE and Head of the Mont-Saint-Michel Mission (France)
Slide 2 :
As a commune, Mont-Saint-Michel must be accessible 24 hours/day, 365 days/year.
3 million people equal to around 1 million vehicles.Slide 3 :
The main access road is via the departmental route 976 from Pontorson.Slide 6 :
An operational layout that will be disrupted by the RCM project.Slide 7 :
Very seasonal visitor flows with:
152 728 veh. (1,252 veh. on average/day) equal to approximately15 % (400,000 Visitors) and 2,600 vis./day (x 1)
Minimum : Monday 12 January 2004 : 459 vehicles493 664 veh. (2,712 veh. on average/day) equal to approximately 50 % (1,500,000 Visitors) and 9,900 vis./day (x 3,8) 344 656 veh. (5,559 veh. on average/day) equal to approximately 35 % (950,000 Visitors) and 15 500 vis./day (x 6)
Maximum : Monday 9 August 2004 : 7,721 vehicles40,000 visitors per day during peak periods
including peak-time Week-ends: 10 %And during two peak times during the day:
- Arrivals: from 10:00 to around 12:00
- Exits: from 15:00 to around 19:00
Slide 8 :
The Mont-St-Michel site is buzzing with 3000 people per hour.Slide 9 :
60% of visitors come from an area located within less than 5 hours from Mont-Saint-Michel.
30% within less than 3 hours.
This explains why there is a high rate of visitors returning to the site: around 57 % of visitors who return 6.5 times on average (mainly French, Belgian, then German and British).
43% for first-time visitors.For an average visit duration of just over 3 hours.
10% of visitors stay more than one day at the site with an average stay duration of 2.5 days (3.5 days during low season)
Visits by couples or families (68%) for 14 % of organised tripsSlide 10 :
The private car or hire car today represents 74% of visits.
Buses and coaches (regular routes and operators) 18 % (2 + 16)
Motor homes 4 %
Other transport modes 4 %A prevalence of road transport, generating:
- Visual pollution
- Mobilisation of natural spaces
- Water pollution (hydrocarbons, heavy metals, etc.)
- Noise pollution
Slide 11 :
In 1995, the Prime Minister, Édouard Balladur, in agreement with the local governments, launched the project aimed at restoring the maritime character of Mont-Saint-Michel.
I will not present the entire project to you here but will concentrate on the “travel and visitor flow management” aspect of the project by way of illustration.Slide 12 :
Hydraulic works (a dam, the creation of a water reserve of over 1 Mm3, sea guidance works), designed for using energy from the ocean tides to naturally remove the sediments accumulated around Mont-Saint-Michel.
A new access route, almost transparent due to the construction of a footbridge over a fine bridge pier.Slide 13 :
A car park incorporated perfectly into the environment with permanent tree-shaded parking areas and non-permanent parking segments in areas of vegetation.
Slide 14 :
- The shift from project management to regional development
- Make sure that the Mont-Saint-Michel “lighthouse” shines out across the entire bay allowing visitors to discover other aspects of the local tourism offer
- The shift from a captive tourism market logic to a logic of enhanced appreciation and exploration
- Development of the quality of the tourist offer
- Encourage visitors to play an “active role”
Slide 15 :
Favour the spreading of visitor numbers rather than concentration
- A new car park with the same capacity as the current one. Bearing in mind the increased distance in terms of access to Mont-Saint-Michel due to moving the car park to behind the hamlet of Caserne, the stay durations will have a tendency to be extended and the real parking capacity will be reduced.
- The setting up of additional “park-and-ride” facilities from Pontorson (station) enabling a modal transport connection and a reduction in the saturation of the “intra-muros” site.
- Informational service (Virtual purse, Internet, radio, etc.) allowing visitors to be guided during their stay and helping them to discover other local treasures (the manuscript collection of Avranches, the coastal towns offering a wealth of history etc.)
- Setting up of usage sensitive pricing.
Slide 16 :
Favour the discovery of Mont-Saint-Michel on foot
- Ship stop-off point at the entrance of the footbridge (8 to 900 m from Mont-Saint-Michel)
- Quality pedestrian walkways, inviting visitors to stroll around and explore via the irrigation of the hamlet of Caserne from the car park
- An objective of the “Tourism and the Disabled” label
Slide 17 :
The desire for an innovating vehicle:
- Reversible
- Monotrace
- With a specific design
Ending in a technological impossibility as regards the acceptable costs
Did not take into account its link with the rest of the bay and the potential inter-modal connectionsSlide 18 :
Extend the transport system specific to the project with a more global travel outlook allowing the development of more inclusive and integrated tourism offers.
A transport system supported by the rail routes that are currently being improved (current state-region programme contracts, future project contracts for 2007–2013) :
- The TGV Rennes – Saint-Malo service
- The inter-regional Caen - Rennes serviceSlide 19 :
Technological evolutions in the transport sector:
- The technology solutions of tomorrow’s world (electric, hybrid etc.) are currently under study but are not yet profitable
The implementation of rail transport enhancement programmes :
- The time scale is not the same between the project implementation (completion of the new car park and putting into service of shuttles from now until 2012) and the completion of the rail network enhancement programmes, etc.
Visitor behaviour evolutions:
- Effect of reduced working time, Sustainable development, etc.Thank you for your attention.
