April 29, 2024

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In Marseille, the metro speaks English, Spanish and… Provençal!

In Marseille, the metro speaks English, Spanish and… Provençal!

Marseille metro (Bouches-du-Rhône), home to five million tourists every year, took until 2023 to start speaking English and Spanish. Going even further, the metropolitan transport network also adopts the pronunciation of Provence.

The system will be fully operational at eighteen stations on the M1 line and 13 stations on the M2 line from the start of the school year, when millions of overseas visitors will need to use it to attend the Rugby World Cup. across the entire tram network.

“Is this really a priority for our transport network? »

“Very good! I don’t speak a word of French! At the Gare Saint-Charles metro station, says Karen, her suitcases in hand. Scott, who was surprised that this was not the case earlier, is relieved and Bruno, a local, is happy for the image of the city. “The metro is being modernized, now we have 4G, And here are the announcements translated for foreigners! That’s cool! »

“It would be even better if he grunted!” “, new to Marseille, living in the old port, continues Robin, who will now get off at the Port-Vieille stop: “Since I was a child, the announcements from the Toulouse metro have been translated into Occitan, and it feels good to me to be in Marseille. Put it down! »

“But is it really a priority for our public transport network? Lawrence asks, pointing out, for example, the difficulties of access or the working conditions of its agents. “Of course, it does not fall into the code and use”, slices Médéric Gasquet-Cyrus. Considering that “Provencal is an integral part of the city”, Researcher, Linguistics lecturer and co-founder of Mochus, an online game popular among language enthusiasts in Marseille.

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