Editing Dunkirk (section)

==Transport==
Dunkirk has a ferry route to [[Dover]] that is run by [[DFDS]], which serves as an alternative to the route to the service to nearby [[Calais]]. The Dover-Dunkirk ferry route takes two hours compared to Dover-Calais' 1 hour 30 minutes, is run by [[MS Dunkerque Seaways|th]][[MS Delft Seaways|r]][[MS Dover Seaways|ee]] vessels and runs every two hours from Dunkirk. Another DFDS route connects Dunkirk to [[Rosslare Europort]] in the [[Republic of Ireland]] and carries truck freight as well as a limited number of private car passengers. The Dunkirk-Rosslare route take 24 hours and is run by the MF ''Regina Seaways''.

The [[Gare de Dunkerque]] railway station offers connections to [[Gare de Calais-Ville]], [[Gare de Lille Flandres]], Arras and Paris, and several regional destinations in France. The railway line from Dunkirk to [[De Panne]] and [[Adinkerke]], Belgium, is closed and has been dismantled in places.

In September 2018, Dunkirk's public transit service introduced free public transport, thereby becoming the largest city in Europe to do so. Several weeks after the scheme had been introduced, the city's mayor, Patrice Vergriete, reported that there had been 50% increase in passenger numbers on some routes, and up to 85% on others. As part of the transition towards offering free bus services, the city's fleet was expanded from 100 to 140 buses, including new vehicles which run on natural gas. The Dunkirk free public transport initiative, initially lauded for its bold ambition, saw a significant decline in ridership after the initial surge. While the first three months post-launch demonstrated a dramatic increase in usage, with some lines experiencing up to 120% higher demand on weekends, the system faced substantial challenges. By the end of the first three months, ridership plummeted by 73% from its peak, eventually stabilizing at only 12% more than pre-pandemic levels (2019-2020). This decline was primarily due to the inability of the public transport infrastructure to handle the overwhelming demand, leading to overcrowding, delays, and reduced service quality. Despite these issues, Dunkirk’s free transport program remains operational, albeit limited to weekends, a marked reduction from its original full-time service. This scaling back underscores the difficulties in maintaining such an ambitious project, with financial constraints and logistical inefficiencies contributing to its partial rollback. While the program succeeded in increasing mobility for low-income residents and reducing car usage initially, its long-term sustainability has been questioned, casting doubt on its viability as a model for other cities. (https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/after-becoming-largest-european-city-to-offer-free-public-transit-theyre-enjoying-a-revolution-from-their-buses/), https://theconversation.com/in-the-french-city-of-dunkirk-free-public-transport-has-led-to-more-walking-and-cycling-127411, https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-01-14/free-public-transit-can-it-work-in-every-city)


<ref>{{Cite web |last=Willsher |first=Kim |date=15 October 2018 |title='I leave the car at home': how free buses are revolutionising one French city |url=https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/oct/15/i-leave-the-car-at-home-how-free-buses-are-revolutionising-one-french-city |access-date=15 October 2018 |website=The Guardian |language=en}}</ref> As of August 2019, approximately 5% of 2000 people surveyed had used the free bus service to completely replace their cars.<ref>{{Cite news |date=31 August 2019 |title=French city of Dunkirk tests out free transport – and it works |work=France24 |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20190831-france-dunkirk-free-transportation-bus-success-climate-cities |access-date=17 September 2019}}</ref>