Paris Watch Metro Shows Underground Slice of Life a La Paris By KIKI YOSHIDA	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
地下鉄が映し出すパリの一面 パリの市内を縦横無尽に走る地下鉄ー全部で14もの路線があり、まさにパリっ子の「足」です。しかし、物乞いや、頻発するストライキなど、問題点も少なくありません。おまけに落書きで車両が汚いとあっては、せっかくの花の都も台無しに？！

The metro is my main means of transportation around Paris. The lines are numbered, now through 14, and cover the entire city. I can go anywhere by metro.

Every month it is my custom to buy a Carte Orange, a travel pass that offers unlimited travel in specified zones for the month. This pass can be used for the bus and RER (reseau express regional, or greater Paris high-speed train service) as well.

In the metro, the next stop is not announced nor is it written on the wall of the platforms. It was hard to get used to this, but now when I take the underground in Japan, I am surprised to discover again how generously that system offers passengers the information they need.

During my daily ride, I see people who beg money from passengers. Those panhandlers may be male or female, young or old. They usually hop into the coach just before the doors close.

Then they start yelling: "Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Excuse me for disturbing you. My name is Gerard. I am 36 years old. I have no work, no home and no money. Please be kind enough to give me one or two francs or a restaurant ticket or a cigarette. Thank you for listening. Have a good afternoon, everybody."

Then they walk through the car, asking for money. Normally there is someone who hands over some coins, while the others just look down on the floor, pretending to be completely indifferent.

Musicians also people the metro. They tend to play nostalgic French tunes from 1950s and 1960s. These sounds add a relaxed atmosphere. I especially like the sound of the accordion. It matches perfectly the ambiance of the Parisian metro!

What annoys me most about using the metro is the frequency of strikes. France is notorious for going on strike. I have seen and heard a number of strikes recently. Usually I don't care much, but when it effects the lines or times I use, I cannot stand it!

Last June, when I was working as a booth attendant at an exhibition, I left home early in the morning for the nearby metro station. I waited for the train * 15 minutes, 20 minutes. Thirty minutes passed without any sign of the train running.

More and more people gathered at the platform wondering what was wrong. We asked each other if anyone knew what the problem was, but nobody seemed to know. I got irritated about being late.

After a while I gave up and left the platform to find another way to work. Outside I saw a number of people heading to bus stops and taxi stands. I followed them, only to find a very long queue in front of the taxi stand — so long it would have taken two hours to get a taxi. I was at a loss like everyone else. Some people started jeering, and others were mumbling to themselves. Some even started hitchhiking.

I phoned my boyfriend for help. He was at work but, fortunately, managed to give me a ride on his motorcycle to my destination. Every road was flooded with cars and pedestrians who would normally be using the subways.

The metro was paralyzed for several days. I found out later that a violent incident had triggered the strike. Some illegal fruit vendors in the station assaulted a station employee because he warned the vendors to leave. The victim died at the hospital later. After the news spread to his colleagues, their fury grew uncontrollable. The incident happened the day before the strike.

As you can tell from the story above, security is a big issue here. I always avoid taking the metro at night, for instance. You cannot be too cautious while traveling by metro. You could have the misfortune to run into a pickpocket or even to be assaulted.

Graffiti is another big problem. A total of 80 members of the metro staff now work removing graffiti from the trains and stations. The cost is F20 million ( 320 million) per year. It's a pity to have senseless brats around.

Fare cheaters also cause the staff a lot of trouble. Despite the fact that the numbers of controllers is increasing, fraud doesn't disappear. Even when they install new ticket gates in stations to prevent cheaters, the cheaters find way to sneak around them.

A new metro line (Line 14) opened to the public Oct. 15. This line drew a lot of attention because it is the nation's first fully automated one. The train is totally computerized and there is no driver on board.

I take this line often and feel more relaxed on it than on any other line. I think that is because the coach is equipped with a video surveillance system. The stations are always neat and clean. I've never seen anything unpleasant on the 14th so far. There are plans to extend the line in the near future.

The Parisian metro celebrates its centennial anniversary in 2000. There are expected to be about 40 events held all around Paris in the new year. It should be interesting to discover Paris anew from the perspective of metro history!

Shukan ST: Jan. 7, 2000

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