April 27, 2024. No less than 34 of the 55 buses from the Pâtis activity zone depot are already circulating in Rambouillet (Yvelines) and its surroundings with tanks full of biomethane. The goal is to reach 100% with the delivery of new vehicles by Ile-de-France Mobilités because, from now on, the Transdev depot in Rambouillet, as well as those in Houdan, Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines and Soon Méré will have its own compressed natural gas (CNG) station.
The entire south of Yvelines, through these biomethane stations, will be able to circulate thanks to natural gas. To do this, in Rambouillet, the last facility, delivered in April 2024, it was necessary to build an imposing cabinet. There are the three compressors that pass the natural gas at a pressure of 250 bars to then feed the pumps. They are fed by the GRDF network, connected to the 55 natural gas production centers of Île-de-France in the methanization units.
In total, Ile-de-France Mobilités invested 5.5 million euros: “Having clean buses is not everything, it is necessary to have adequate centers to accommodate them,” underlines Grégoire de Lasteyrie, vice president of Île-de-. France Mobilités.
“The goal is to move to 100% clean buses throughout the region by 2029,” the official added. 3,000 already are. And 4,000, for which we voted in favor in February, will be commissioned between 2025 and 2028.”
With 120 lines, the Rambouillet region receives 7 million travelers a year using its road transport network. The arrival of biomethane is “a new step towards the energy transition,” celebrated Thomas Gourlan, president of the Rambouillet Territories agglomeration, responsible for transport.
Vehicles operated from the Grenonvilliers depots, in Rambouillet, and Boinville-le-Gaillard, near Ablis, will also be able to recharge at the new Pâtis station.
The Rambouillet operational center received 34 new coaches that run on biomethane. To reinforce the offer in the region, the fleet will be complemented with another 24 new ones this year.
