Parisian buses to revive public transportation

After decades of stagnation and traffic chaos, Lebanon reconnects with public transport. Thanks to an unprecedented partnership between the Ministry of Public Works, RATP, and private actors, a fleet of rehabilitated buses is once again circulating in several cities across the country. An initiative that restores hope to a population long deprived of public and sustainable mobility.

AI Index: Mediterranean Knowledge Library
Parisian buses to revive public transport
22-med – November 2025
• Thanks to a partnership between RATP, the Ministry of Transport, and private actors, a fleet of rehabilitated buses is once again circulating in Beirut and several cities across the country.
• This return of public transport symbolizes the reconstruction of an essential public service and the promise of more sustainable mobility.
#lebanon #transport #mobility #partnership #mediterranean #sustainability

It’s a scene that many Lebanese had given up hope of seeing again: brand new, or almost new, buses crossing Beirut, stopping at stations, picking up passengers. These vehicles come from Paris. Donated by the Régie autonome des transports parisiens, they were rehabilitated before being sent to Lebanon, where they now operate on eleven experimental lines. For a country deprived of public transport since the civil war, this is a huge change of direction.

An Unprecedented Public-Private Partnership

Due to a lack of resources, the Lebanese state could not undertake such a project alone. The Ministry of Public Works and Transport therefore launched a call for tenders within the private sector, giving rise to an unprecedented public-private partnership. “The state had the will, but not the resources,” explains Fadia Zarzour, chair of the public transport oversight committee. “Thanks to the collaboration between the ministry, RATP, and private actors, we were able to get a long-forgotten public service back on the road.”

The first buses now serve Beirut, Bekaa, Sidon, Tyre, and Tripoli. “We already have eleven active lines thanks to the RATP buses and those already in place,” adds Ms. Zarzour. “We are expecting thirty buses from Qatar and one hundred buses from China. This should allow us to open new lines and cover almost the entire Lebanese territory.”