The project entrusted to SAFRA in 2019, for the renovation of 15 MAN articulated buses of the RATP (Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens) has just been completed. These vehicles, assigned to the ROISSYBUS line, needed mechanical and aesthetic overhaul. This project is a first reference of RATP bus renovation for SAFRA.
The 15 articulated buses (18.75 m) MAN City Lion’s (NGL 274 L4) have now returned to service. The pace was fast during the construction period, with a downtime of only 3 weeks, including delivery and return. The very first bus joined SAFRA’s workshops in March 2019, for a completion of the worksite initially planned for June 2020, which was finally extended to July 16, as the COVID-19 containment period forced SAFRA teams to stop production for 6 weeks.
The main work carried out on these buses is at the level of the mechanics with a complete revision of the three axles (suspension and braking) and the engine environment (injection, gearbox, radiator, etc…). A work on the bodywork was also necessary, by adapting to the RATP constraints, i.e. a total covering of the bodywork by adhesive.
SAFRA had already worked in the past for RATP but on other types of vehicles, with for example the renovation of the two cabins of the Montmartre funicular (winter 2017 and 2018) and since June 2016 an assistance site for ORLYVAL in the market of changing images of the 8 VAL 206 metro trains. The last train was put back into operation in July 2020. This bus renovation project demonstrates once again SAFRA’s position as a key player in the maintenance of public transport equipment.