Sir - In your concise and colourful report on the recently inaugurated light rail project in Le Mans (RG 1.08 p11), there was no mention of the role of Transamo.
In 2001 Le Mans Métropole mandated local public-private entity SEM to manage the design and construction of the first light rail lines. Having no experience in the field of public transport, SEM appointed Transamo to provide project management services for the duration of the project. All of the major project engineers, including the Project Manager and his deputies, were seconded from Transamo.
We are very proud of the result. The budget was met, and the Sablons branch has been inaugurated four months before the planned date. In general, I feel that assistance à maîtrise d'ouvrage, managing projects on behalf of transport authorities with little resources or experience of their own, is an aspect of light rail development which is not well enough known in the UK, and we are often forgotten when the time comes to name those who made the project possible.
Francisco Luciano
Director, Transamo
Issy-les-Moulineaux, France
