Rail transport in France

Rail transport in France

TGV at Paris-Est station
Operation
National railway SNCF
Infrastructure company SNCF
Major operators Thalys, Lyria, Eurostar, RATP, Elipsos, ECR
Statistics
Ridership 1,122 million (2014)[1]
Passenger km 83.9 billion (2014)[1]
Freight 32 billion tonne-km (2014)[1]
System length
Total 29,901 kilometres (18,580 mi) [2]
Double track 16,445 km (10,218 mi)
Electrified 15,140 km (9,410 mi)
High-speed 1,876 km (1,166 mi)
Track gauge
Main 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
High-speed 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)
Electrification
25 kV AC 9,113 km (5,663 mi)
1500 V DC 5,905 km (3,669 mi)
other 122 km (76 mi)
Features
No. tunnels 1,300[3]
Tunnel length 540 km (340 mi)
Longest tunnel 50.5 km (31.4 mi) (Channel Tunnel)
Longest bridge 2.178 km (1.353 mi) (Saint-André-de-Cubzac bridge)
No. stations 3,054 (2009).[4]
Highest elevation 1,593m (Yellow Train)
Map

Rail transport in France is operated mostly by SNCF, the French national railway company. France has the second largest European railway network, with a total of 29,901 kilometres of railway.[2] However, the railway system is a small portion of total travel, accounting for less than 10% of passenger travel.[5]

Since 1981, the SNCF has operated the TGV service, a high-speed rail network which has been consistently expanded in subsequent years.

France is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for France is 87.

History

The history of rail transport in France dates from the first French railway in 1832.

Exploitation

Since Legrand Star rail plan of 1842, French railway is highly polarized by Paris.

Traffic is concentrated on the main lines: 78% of activity is done on 30% of the network (8,900 km) when the 46% smaller lines (13,600 km) only drive 6% of the traffic.[6] The 366 largest stations (12%) make 85% of passenger activity, and the smallest 56% of stations take only 1.7% of traffic.[7]

Freight transport

Freight transport has declined since the early 1980s.[8] Today the network is predominantly passenger centric.

Since January 1 2007, the freight market has been open to conform to European Union agreements (EU Directive 91/440). New operators had already reached 15% of the market at the end of 2008.[9]

Passenger transport

Short and middle distance

The Transport express régional (TER) is directed by the administrative Regions of France. They contract with the SNCF for lines exploitation.

Long distance

The SNCF directly manage this class of trains. The TGV is used on the most important destinations, while Intercités carriages are still used for other lines.

Network

The French railway network, as administered by SNCF Réseau, as of June 2007, is a network of commercially usable lines of 29,213 kilometres (18,152 mi), of which 15,141 km (9,408 mi) is electrified. 1,876 km (1,166 mi) of those are high speed lines (LGV), 16,445 km (10,218 mi) dispose of two or more tracks. 5,905 km (3,669 mi) are supplied with 1,500 V DC, 9,113 km (5,663 mi) with 25 kV AC at 50 Hz. 122 km (76 mi) are electrified by third rail or other means.[2]

1,500 V is used on the south, and HSR lines and the northern part of the country use 25 kV electrification.

Trains drive on the left, except in Alsace and Moselle where tracks were first constructed while those regions were part of Germany.

Current status

The French non-TGV intercity service (TET) is in decline, with old infrastructure and trains. It is likely to be hit further as the French government is planning to remove the monopoly that rail currently has on long-distance journeys by letting coach operators compete.[10]

Travel to the UK through the Channel Tunnel has grown in recent years, and from May 2015 passengers have been able to travel direct to Marseille, Avignon and Lyon. Eurostar is also introducing new Class 374 trains and refurbishing the current Class 373s.

The International Transport Forum described the current status of the French railways in their paper "Efficiency indicators of Railways in France":[11]

Subsidies

Like roads, the French railways receive rail subsidies from the state in order to operate. Those amounted to €13.2 billion in 2013.[11]

Subsidy per passenger journey for UK, Germany, Spain, Italy and France in Euros

Material

Alstom is the manufacturer of the TGV, and is behind many regional train models (Régiolis, SNCF Class Z 26500 ... )

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Railway Statistics – 2014 Synopsis" (PDF). Paris, France: International Union of Railways, IUC. 2014. Retrieved 2015-09-09.
  2. 1 2 3 RFF Website "Network inventory"
  3. ↑ http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/rap-oecst/tunnels/r2388.asp#_Toc483033395
  4. ↑ La Gare Contemporaine p94, Fabienne Keller
  5. ↑ "Transport in France". International Transport Statistics Database. iRAP. Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved 2009-02-17.
  6. ↑ Audit sur l'état du réseau national français p3, Robert Rivier & Yves Putallaz, 2005 September 7
  7. ↑ Gares et Connexion p20
  8. ↑ Pourquoi le fret ferroviaire va-t-il si mal en France ? Autour du plan Véron (Fret 2006) Pierre Zembri 2004
  9. ↑ http://www.senat.fr/rap/r08-220/r08-2207.html
  10. ↑ "France's loss-making inter-city services at a crossroads".
  11. 1 2 "Efficiency indicators of Railways in France" (PDF).
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