Delegated management, the procedure used in the majority of regions in France for managing urban public transport networks, raises several major fundamental issues, such as : what form of delegation is used ? What type of contract is involved? What procedures are most appropriate for different types of project ? What public transport policy should be implemented ? Analysis of the legal data contained in the database on urban public transport in the French provinces for 2005, may throw light on these issues, helping us to assess the variety of solutions developed and get a clear picture of current
trends.