Valerie Pecresse, head of the Paris region's transport authority, insists that the controversial rise in metro fares will only concern those visiting the French capital for the 2024 Olympics and will not apply to season ticket holders. "I made a commitment to the people of Ile-de-France; they won't be the ones paying for the additional transport provided for the Olympic Games, the visitors will," she says during a visit to the operations centre for the new Grand Paris Express rapid transit lines. "We're going to be providing a lot of extra transport so that the Olympics are fully accessible by public transport, and that comes at a cost," she adds. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES