Serge le Lapin has become the RATP's prevention mascot, not only by the doors of the metro trains, but also on some of the metro escalators. This year, the " rabbit of the metro " celebrates his 48th birthday! Here's a look back at the history of this mascot, who is now also featured on some of the clothing available from the Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens official store.
Many people don't know it, but the " subway rabbit " was created on February 15, 1977 by designer Anne Le Lagadec, who was Creative Director at ECOM at the time. Both a symbol of " fragility " and " gentleness ", according to Anne Le Lagadec, the rabbit is also an animal that " runs around carelessly ". This little long-eared mammal was therefore chosen to " illustrate the prevention message about the risk of pinched fingers in metro doors, particularly for young people ", explains RATP.
Initially, the stickers featuring the little rabbit were not deployed on all lines. Line 1 was the first to see the appearance of the " metro rabbit ".
We had to wait more than 10 years, until 1986, for the first evolution of the " subway bunny ", thanks to the now famous Serge Maury. Gone were the red overalls, replaced by a " flashier " yellow outfit, covering the rabbit from head to toe. However, the message remains unchanged: " Be careful! Don't put your hands on the doors: you're liable to get pinched!
During this period, the " rabbit of the metro " also gradually took on the first name of Monsieur Maury, to become, in the eyes of all commuters, the indispensable " Serge le Lapin ".
New evolution in May 2014. At the request of the RATP, which wanted to modernize the environment in which the rabbit was displayed, the 4uatre agency gave birth to a more contemporary rabbit with a more stylish outfit. This more modern Serge le Lapin, now wearing blue jeans, a yellow t-shirt and a pair of sneakers, was gradually rolled out in 2014 on the 24,000 doors of the metro and RER. The objective remains the same: "to make passengers aware of the right reflexes to adopt when opening doors ", explains the Régie.
Finally, new Serge the Rabbit stickers appeared in the metro on February 15, 2017, this time with a different message: " Careful! Don't put your feet near the edge, you could get hurt badly ". These prevention stickers have thus been affixed to the 115 most"accident-prone" escalators in the RATP network.
Official website
www.ratp.fr
