I wonder, has anybody got any pictures of it?

especially at night

I just remember going there when I was younger and the station (is it all glass or did I imagine that?) (plus the whole town really) was lit up and covered in snow, twas perfect

Pictures of the railway station in 2004:

http://photoenligne2.free.fr/Isere/Grenoble/Gare/N14261.jpg

http://photoenligne2.free.fr/Isere/Grenoble/Gare/N14266.jpg

http://www.lis.inpg.fr/fileadmin/acces_LIS/gare.jpg

Paris suburban railway is not only the RER.

Paris suburban system has transported 1052.9 million passengers in 2004
It is the most used suburban system in Europe.

RER is are operated by the RATP and Transillien SNCF
Suburban trains are are operated by Transillien SNCF
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/2654/mapidfvr4.gif

http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gif RER
http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gif Suburban trains network.
http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gif Subway
http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gif Light rail

Gare Saint Lazare http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-e_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-J_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M03_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M12_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M13_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M14_17.gif
The biggest suburban station in Paris, this station is actually in renovation.
Saint Lazare station has actually 100 million passenger per years (Subway and RER exclude.)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/Gare_Saint-Lazare_Facade.JPG/800px-Gare_Saint-Lazare_Facade.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/75/Gare-st-lazare-3.jpg/800px-Gare-st-lazare-3.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Gare_Saint-Lazare_vue01.jpg/800px-Gare_Saint-Lazare_vue01.jpg
RER station
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/RER-Paris-Salle-echange-Gar.jpg/800px-RER-Paris-Salle-echange-Gar.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/RER-Paris-ligne-E-Rame-Z225.jpg/800px-RER-Paris-ligne-E-Rame-Z225.jpg
subway entrance
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e0/Saint-Lazare-1-Salle-echang.jpg/800px-Saint-Lazare-1-Salle-echang.jpg

Some other suburban stations in the west of Paris.

Gare de Pont-Cardinet http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Pont-Cardinet_ext%C3%A9rieur.JPG/800px-Pont-Cardinet_ext%C3%A9rieur.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Pont-Cardinet_quais_1.JPG/800px-Pont-Cardinet_quais_1.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Pont-Cardinet_remisage.JPG/800px-Pont-Cardinet_remisage.JPG

Courbevoie http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Gare_Courbevoie.jpg/800px-Gare_Courbevoie.jpg

La Defense http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-a_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-U_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M01_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
This station has 400,000 passenger per day (All transport include)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Station-rer-la-defense.jpg/800px-Station-rer-la-defense.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r23/UT596001/240307083.jpg
It is not a RER.
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r23/UT596001/240307086.jpg
Light rail
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r23/UT596001/240307084.jpg
RER station Scroll >>>>>>>>
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/GareGrandeArche.jpg

La Garenne-Colombes http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9f/La_Garenne-Colombes%2C_gare.JPG/800px-La_Garenne-Colombes%2C_gare.JPG

Houilles - Carrières-sur-Seine http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-a_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-J_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Houilles_-_Gare02.jpg/800px-Houilles_-_Gare02.jpg

Argenteuil http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-J_17.gif
Between 15 000 and 50 000 passenger per day
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Gare_d%27argenteuil.JPG

Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines - Montigny-le-Bretonneux http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-N_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-U_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/SQY_Gare4.jpg/800px-SQY_Gare4.jpg

Mareil-Marly http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/Mareil-Marly_Gare2.jpg/800px-Mareil-Marly_Gare2.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/Gco_nois_mareil2.jpg/800px-Gco_nois_mareil2.jpg

Noisy-le-Roi http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/96/Noisy-le-Roi_-_Gare02.jpg/800px-Noisy-le-Roi_-_Gare02.jpg

Versailles Chantier http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-N_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-U_17.gif
18 million passengers per year
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r23/UT596001/240307064.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r23/UT596001/240307067.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r23/UT596001/240307069.jpg

Those pictures was not taken by me :)

Thanks for the post, photos and info. No much is said of Paris's suburban rail network. The metro and to a lesser degree RER take most of the glory. But this is usual as suburban lines are never as iconic. Still, Paris has such a great system.

I have to get back to Paris and explore them more.

One of big problem of Paris suburban system is the old train

These train called NAT will run in 2009
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Maquette_NAT.JPG/800px-Maquette_NAT.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/Maquette_NAT_int%C3%A9rieur.JPG/800px-Maquette_NAT_int%C3%A9rieur.JPG


But I really like these refurbished train in the Grande Ceinture line (Outer ring line, Actually a small part of this line reopened in 2004)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5d/Gco_nois_stnom3.jpg/800px-Gco_nois_stnom3.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/12/Z6400gco_interieur3.jpg/800px-Z6400gco_interieur3.jpg

Very nice photographs!

It seems to me that conc. Suburban one of the main problems is that the plattforms are very narrow. Especially during rush-hour quite uncomfortable.

Some picture of the RER C in the west of Paris

Line C was created in 1979 by connecting the Gare d'Orsay railway terminus (now Musée d'Orsay) with the Invalides terminus of the Rive Gauche line to Versailles, along the banks of the Seine. In 1988 the Argenteuil branch opened, using most of the infrastructure of the old SNCF Auteuil line and connecting to the line's main trunk at Champ de Mars-Tour Eiffel via a curved bridge (the only one in Paris) over the Seine river.

Stations served : 84
Length : 185.6 km or 115.3 mi
140,000,000 passengers in 2004

Invalides http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M08_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M13_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/46/Invalides-Acc%C3%A8s_RER.JPG/800px-Invalides-Acc%C3%A8s_RER.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/Invalides-RER_C.JPG/800px-Invalides-RER_C.JPG



Champ de Mars - Tour Eiffel http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M06_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/51/Bir-Hakeim_RER.jpg/800px-Bir-Hakeim_RER.jpg



Porte de Clichy http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M13_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/RER_Porte_de_Clichy_entree.JPG/800px-RER_Porte_de_Clichy_entree.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/RER_Porte_de_Clichy_quais.JPG/800px-RER_Porte_de_Clichy_quais.JPG



Pereire - Levallois http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M03_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/96/RER_Pereire_quais.JPG/800px-RER_Pereire_quais.JPG



Neuilly - Porte Maillot http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M01_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Gare_de_Neuillly_Porte_Maillot_quais.jpg/800px-Gare_de_Neuillly_Porte_Maillot_quais.jpg



http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/RER-C_bridge.jpg/800px-RER-C_bridge.jpg



Boulevard Victor - Pont du Garigliano http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T3_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f9/Bd_Victor_RER_cot%C3%A9_rue.JPG/800px-Bd_Victor_RER_cot%C3%A9_rue.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/Bd_Victor_RER_cot%C3%A9_quais.JPG/800px-Bd_Victor_RER_cot%C3%A9_quais.JPG



Issy Val de Seine http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/6195/dsc01369jh0.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Issy_Val_de_Seine_quais.JPG/800px-Issy_Val_de_Seine_quais.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d9/Paris_tramway-T2.jpg/800px-Paris_tramway-T2.jpg



http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e3/RER_C_Issy.jpg/800px-RER_C_Issy.jpg



Issy http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b6/Issy_quais.JPG/800px-Issy_quais.JPG



Versailles Rive Gauche http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Versailles-Rive_gauche01.jpg/800px-Versailles-Rive_gauche01.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9e/Versailles-Rive_gauche03.jpg/800px-Versailles-Rive_gauche03.jpg

Wow!! What a huge network. I love that NAT train. Hopefully I'll get to ride on the RER when I go to Paris one day...

RER B

It is the second most used line in Paris with around 1 million passengers per day.

Length : 80.0 km (49.7 miles)
Number of stops : 47
Traffic (2004) : 165,100,000 journeys per annum (figure only for the RATP section of the line)
The southern part of the line (south of Gare du Nord) is operated by RATP, the northern part by SNCF. Trains are owned by either company. Drivers change at Gare du Nord. Trains moving from one network to the other at this station is known as the Interconnexion.

Line B was the product of the connection in 1977 of the Ligne de Sceaux terminus, Luxembourg, with the Gare du Nord via Châtelet - Les Halles.


Aéroport Charles-de-Gaulle 2 TGV http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/33/Gare_A%C3%A9roport_Charles-de-Gaulle_2_TGV.jpg/800px-Gare_A%C3%A9roport_Charles-de-Gaulle_2_TGV.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/Gare_CDG_2.JPG/800px-Gare_CDG_2.JPG



Vert-Galant http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Villepinte_-_Gare_du_Vert-Galant_04.jpg/799px-Villepinte_-_Gare_du_Vert-Galant_04.jpg




Sevran - Livry http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Gare_de_Sevran_Livry_pano-1.jpg/800px-Gare_de_Sevran_Livry_pano-1.jpg



Aulnay-sous-Bois http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-K_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/18/GareDaulnaySousBois.jpg/781px-GareDaulnaySousBois.jpg



Plaine - Stade de France http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/RER-B_La-Plaine.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/81/GARE_RER_B_La_Plaine_-_Stade_de_France.JPG/800px-GARE_RER_B_La_Plaine_-_Stade_de_France.JPG



Gare du Nord http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-D_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-E_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-K_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M02_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M04_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M05_17.gif
It is busiest railway terminal in Europe with over 200 million passagers per year
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Gare_du_Nord_Nouveau_pole_%C3%A9change_banlieue.JPG/450px-Gare_du_Nord_Nouveau_pole_%C3%A9change_banlieue.JPG


Here the RER is operated by the RATP

Chatelet les Halles http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-A_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-D_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M01_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M04_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M07_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M11_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M14_17.gif
It is the busiest station in Paris with over 270 million passengers per years.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1e/RER_B_014.jpg/800px-RER_B_014.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Chatelet_les_Halles.JPG/800px-Chatelet_les_Halles.JPG
http://mapage.noos.fr/marla13/foule_rer.jpg



Saint-Michel - Notre-Dame http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M04_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M10_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8c/St_Michel_RER_B.JPG/800px-St_Michel_RER_B.JPG



Luxembourg http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/RER_B_Luxembourg_P1200035.jpg/800px-RER_B_Luxembourg_P1200035.jpg



Denfert-Rochereau http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M04_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M06_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/Gare_de_Denfert-Rochereau_-_Batiment_voyageur.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Gare_de_Denfert-Rochereau_-_Quais.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Gare_de_Denfert-Rochereau_-_Train_a_quai.jpg



Cité universitaire http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T3_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Train_station_Cit%C3%A9_Universitaire.jpg/800px-Train_station_Cit%C3%A9_Universitaire.jpg



Gentilly http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5c/RER_B-Gentilly2.jpg/800px-RER_B-Gentilly2.jpg



Laplace http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ad/RER_B-Laplace1.jpg/800px-RER_B-Laplace1.jpg



Arcueil - Cachan http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/RER_B-Arcueil1.jpg/800px-RER_B-Arcueil1.jpg



Bagneux http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/71/RER_B-Bagneux1.jpg/800px-RER_B-Bagneux1.jpg



Bourg-la-Reine http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a4/RER-B_BourgLaReine1.jpg/800px-RER-B_BourgLaReine1.jpg



Antony http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/RER-B_Antony1.jpg/800px-RER-B_Antony1.jpg



Massy - Palaiseau http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-C_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bf/RER-B_MassyP1.jpg/800px-RER-B_MassyP1.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/20/RER-B_MassyP2.jpg/800px-RER-B_MassyP2.jpg



Palaiseau - Villebon http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e2/RER-B_PalaiseauV1.jpg/800px-RER-B_PalaiseauV1.jpg



Gif-sur-Yvette http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/54/Gare_RER_B_de_Gif-sur-Yvette_c%C3%B4t%C3%A9_voies.jpg/800px-Gare_RER_B_de_Gif-sur-Yvette_c%C3%B4t%C3%A9_voies.jpg



Saint-Rémy-lès-Chevreuse http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-B_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/df/Rame_MI79_%C3%A0_Saint-R%C3%A9my-l%C3%A8s-Chevreuse.jpg

super reportage minato ku ! I like the stade de france station

These picture was not taken by me exept the first picture of Issy Val de Seine station. ;)

http://www.pink-martini.org/missions/liens/link.php?m=1&l=1&u=7&k=1q5I0e5licY2VpbrMeOJ7Lhf6Vu5L

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/19/RER-Paris-Salle-echange-Gar.jpg/800px-RER-Paris-Salle-echange-Gar.jpg

Impressive. Where is this, exactly?

It is the RER station Haussman Saint Lazare. It was open in 1999.
This station is really huge
The week ends it is empty but in the week it really busy.

With those stations it form the biggest underground exchange in Europe :
Saint Augustin, Saint Lazare, Haussman Saint Lazare, Havre Caumartin, Auber, Opera. It is 6 station linked by underground passage under the CBD of Paris.
http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-a_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-e_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-J_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-l_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M03_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M07_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M08_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M09_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M12_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M13_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M14_17.gif

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/2183/haussmansaintlazaretc9.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/RER-Paris-Couloir-2-ligne-E.jpg/800px-RER-Paris-Couloir-2-ligne-E.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/RER-Paris-Couloir-ligne-E-a.jpg/800px-RER-Paris-Couloir-ligne-E-a.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/RER-Paris-Station-Haussman-.jpg/799px-RER-Paris-Station-Haussman-.jpg


Also in this exchange Auber the station of the RER A is aslo huge
It was open in 1971
Overcrowed in workdays but empty the week ends :ohno:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Auber-RER-Paris-2005-Hall-2.jpg/750px-Auber-RER-Paris-2005-Hall-2.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b4/Auber-RER-Paris-2005-Hall-1.jpg/750px-Auber-RER-Paris-2005-Hall-1.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Auber-RER-Paris-2005-Platform-1.jpg/750px-Auber-RER-Paris-2005-Platform-1.jpg
http://mapage.noos.fr/gogf/RER/RER-A_Auber_3.jpg

The new subway hall of Saint Lazare opened in 2003 is impressive.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Paris-Metro-Sortie-Saint-La.jpg/800px-Paris-Metro-Sortie-Saint-La.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Saint-Lazare-2-Salle-echang.jpg/800px-Saint-Lazare-2-Salle-echang.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Saint-Lazare-5-Salle-echang.jpg/800px-Saint-Lazare-5-Salle-echang.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Saint-Lazare-9-Salle-echang.jpg/450px-Saint-Lazare-9-Salle-echang.jpg

Very impressive indeed!

Great thread and photos Minato :okay:

The north of Paris

Gare du Nord http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-b_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-d_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-e_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-k_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M02_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M04_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M05_17.gif
It is the busiest railway terminal in Paris with over 200 million passengers.

http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/1954/img3277yk7.jpg
http://img405.imageshack.us/img405/3052/img3284ar2.jpg
http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/4425/img3264iw0.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3c/RER-E-station-Magenta.jpg/800px-RER-E-station-Magenta.jpg


Deuil - Montmagny http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/Deuil-la-Barre_-_Gare_de_Deuil_-_Montmagny_02.jpg/799px-Deuil-la-Barre_-_Gare_de_Deuil_-_Montmagny_02.jpg



Enghien-les-Bains http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/Enghien-les-Bains_-_interieur_de_la_gare.jpg/799px-Enghien-les-Bains_-_interieur_de_la_gare.jpg



Ermont - Halte http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Ermont_-_Gare_d_Ermont_-_Halte_03.jpg/799px-Ermont_-_Gare_d_Ermont_-_Halte_03.jpg



Gros Noyer - Saint-Prix http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a9/Ermont_-_Gare_du_Gros_Noyer_-_Saint-Prix_01.jpg/800px-Ermont_-_Gare_du_Gros_Noyer_-_Saint-Prix_01.jpg


Saint-Leu-la-Forêt http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/54/Gare_de_Saint-Leu-la-Foret_05.jpg/799px-Gare_de_Saint-Leu-la-Foret_05.jpg



Persan - Beaumont http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/Persan_-_Gare_de_Persan_-_Beaumont_01.jpg/800px-Persan_-_Gare_de_Persan_-_Beaumont_01.jpg



Montigny - Beauchamp http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Gare_de_Montigny_-_Beauchamp_04.jpg/800px-Gare_de_Montigny_-_Beauchamp_04.jpg


Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône - Liesse http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/Gare_de_saint_ouen_l%27aum%C3%B4ne_liesse.jpg/800px-Gare_de_saint_ouen_l%27aum%C3%B4ne_liesse.jpg


Pontoise http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-j_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Gare_de_pontoise.jpg/800px-Gare_de_pontoise.jpg

What a impressive thread , great job :applause:

Alltough I have a question about the colors used on the various types of locomotives running on french tracks:
Why is there such a wide variaty in colors ?
Since years I have a subscription to "Rail Passion" and there is always another color combination I didn't know of.

Thanks De Snor, Paris suburbs system is really unkown.
If you see the pictures, you see that the suburbs is most little houses than big public housing bocks.


Some picture of the suburban light rail. T4
Opened in november 2006 this line run in northern inner suburbs, it was an old train line wich was tranformed in light rail compatible with normal train.
It is called Tram Train. :)

Aulnay-sous-Bois http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-b_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-K_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62824.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62823.jpg



Rougemont - Chanteloup http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62816.jpg



Lycée Henri Sellier http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Livry_Gargan_tram_train_Lycee_Henri_Sellier.jpg/800px-Livry_Gargan_tram_train_Lycee_Henri_Sellier.jpg



Gargan http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62827.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62833.jpg



Pavillons-sous-Bois http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/Tram_station%2C_Les_Pavillons_sous_Bois_fr_01.jpg/800px-Tram_station%2C_Les_Pavillons_sous_Bois_fr_01.jpg



Allée De La Tour-Rendez-Vous http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62819.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62822.jpg



Les Coquetiers http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62811.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62813.jpg



Gare de Bondy http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T4_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-e_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-P_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62818.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i62000/img_62831.jpg

Another great thing about this thread is seeing the suburbs in Paris, where it shows that most are not just the commie blocks the media portrays. Paris is such a great city, I really have to get back there again soon.

It is not really a commuter train but this light rail was build in an old suburban line.
T2 links two of most important business district of Paris : Val de Seine at la Defense.
Link the other light rail but unlike the T4, the T2 is operated by the RATP.
Located in the western inner suburbs this line opened in 1997
Now this line is really overcrowed on weekday.

Stations served 13
Length 11.3 km
Journeys made 23,600,000

T2
http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/1821/t2kg7.jpg


La Defense http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-a_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-u_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/M01_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49326.jpg
http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r23/UT596001/240307084.jpg


Puteaux http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-u_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i64000/img_64367.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i64000/img_64368.jpg


Belvédère http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i58000/img_58703.jpg


Suresnes-Longchamp http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49338.jpg


Les Coteaux http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49341.jpg


Parc de Saint-Cloud http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49345.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49340.jpg



Musée de Sèvres http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49327.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49336.jpg


Brimborion http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49344.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49348.jpg


http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49335.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49332.jpg


Les Moulineaux http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49331.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49337.jpg


Issy - Val de Seine http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49322.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49324.jpg
http://images.nycsubway.org/i49000/img_49342.jpg

It is not really a commuter train but this light rail was build in an old suburban line.
T2 links two of most important business district of Paris : Val de Seine at la Defense.
Link the other light rail but unlike the T4, the T2 is operated by the RATP.
Located in the western inner suburbs this line opened in 1997
Now this line is really overcrowed on weekday.

One of the great pleasures of exploring Paris is the diversity of the transportation in the region. It is to long since I spent a week traveling the byroads of Paris. :bash:

Thank you minato ku for reminding me it is time to visit again. :ohno: :) :ohno: :) :ohno:

Great thread.

And those trains for 2009 look awesome. Do you have any more pics/news on them? which lines would get them first?

Nice thread! Paris = Train capital of the world!

I repost the map and the legend
http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/2654/mapidfvr4.gif

http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gif RER
http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gif Suburban trains network.
http://www.metro-pole.net/x/M_17.gif Subway
http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gif Light rail

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Paris gare St Lazare 10 times faster
RBGwsBweeuM

Paris St Lazare brigde 10 times faster
vNju9zEqPEE

Paris Gare du Nord 20 times faster
P7TrJ-NZwiI

A trip on a suburban train of the http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-H_17.gif
From Sarcelles - Saint-Brice to Paris Nord
cSv-sXlMF7Y

A trip on a suburban train http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif or http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-U_17.gif
At Puteaux
15YWXohNAaU

Very interesting. As you might have gathered from another thread, I have an interest in this.

Your first posting reveals a number of broken links ... are they to maps or just to a "legend" ?

Those are not broken links but a problem on the site server. :)

It is just legend that show the sign of subway, RER, Suburban networks, Light rail.

Gare de l'Est 10 times faster
VoTjl5ZAhSo
m39Qin1qZWw

Tracks and depot between Paris Est and Pantin
yLXkxxu8FIQ

Suburban trains type z6400 + z2n at Pont Cardinet
yMc60B76Y4k

Yesterday I was in Paris for a photo shoot of the "Gare de l'Est" which I shall post later on her in this thread.

Above I see impressive numbers of users, is there a list of the busiest in Paris (kind of the 20 busiest railway/public transportation) ?

EDIT see the Paris RER Thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=546006)

I remember a funny thing of the RER net. Every train on the RER network is distinguished not by a number, but it has a 4-letter name, useful to identify the right one especially in those stations where many lines share the same tracks.
Names are easier to identify and to memorize than numbers, maybe even because most of those names were pretty funny :D

I remember a funny thing of the RER net. Every train on the RER network is distinguished not by a number, but it has a 4-letter name, useful to identify the right one especially in those stations where many lines share the same tracks.
Names are easier to identify and to memorize than numbers, maybe even because most of those names were pretty funny :D
This system has been extended to all the suburban "Transilien" network. Thoses names are not displayed on all trains though because not all of them have a front display. But I don't think many people use them. They prefer to check the destination before boarding, this is much more reliable, specialy on the northern part of line B and line C.

I remember a funny thing of the RER net. Every train on the RER network is distinguished not by a number, but it has a 4-letter name, useful to identify the right one especially in those stations where many lines share the same tracks.
Names are easier to identify and to memorize than numbers, maybe even because most of those names were pretty funny :D

something like this for those who don't know it:

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g2/De_Snor/DSC02793.jpg

Champ-de-Mars RER station:

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g2/De_Snor/DSC02792.jpg

one of the long "tapis roulants"

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g2/De_Snor/DSC02779.jpg

Fixed solid metal overhead. Nice. How does contraction and expansion work though in these types of overheads?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/15/RER_C.gif/500px-RER_C.gif

I don't like the RER C, it has to many branchs,
Some branchs will be separted from the RER C.
-The branch : les Saules - Versailles Chantier
-The branch : Petit veaux - Massy Plaisanseau -Versailles Chantier

One of these branch will became the Grande Ceinture line "Oulter ring line"

Just got back from Paris a couple days ago and it was incredible. I love that city and the rail network is brilliant and very impressive. The RER is packed compared to the Metro, to me it was used far more. I was wondering what it meant when train's livery included RER/Transilien, does that mean that both SNCF and RATP jointly operate the train? It was really interesting the difference between during the week and weekend crowds, it seems the people that would commute during the week don't go anywhere near the trains on the weekend. Just an amazing system.

This is the news system of information "SIEL" on RATP RER

http://www.ratp.fr/corpo/siel/img/rer2.jpg

RER A exept the branch of Poissy and the branch of Cergy owned by Transillien Sncf
RER B exept the northern part after Gare du Nord wich was owned by Transillien Sncf

Very nice pics. I like the train design on the T2 in particular.

I hate the RER C, slow, big, not frequent, goes in the middle of nowhere.

It's such a constrast to change from B to C in Massy-Palaiseau.

1.
http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/6307/cimg0467xi0.jpg
2.
http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/6890/cimg0475wx9.jpg
3.
http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/8310/cimg0479yg6.jpg
4.
http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/8715/cimg0483to3.jpg
5.
http://img503.imageshack.us/img503/7818/cimg0492mq1.jpg
6.
http://img181.imageshack.us/img181/2599/cimg0514nd8.jpg
7.
http://img162.imageshack.us/img162/3081/cimg0519hd3.jpg
8.
http://img485.imageshack.us/img485/5267/cimg0520mt7.jpg
9.
http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/7818/cimg0528le5.jpg
10.
http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/9687/cimg0529bb1.jpg

Interior.

11.
http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/9932/cimg0561qx0.jpg
12.
http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/9460/cimg0562ru1.jpg
13.
http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/6131/cimg0565uy3.jpg
14.
http://img504.imageshack.us/img504/9540/cimg0569cd2.jpg
15.
http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/5360/cimg0572me0.jpg
16.
http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/5792/cimg0574zj2.jpg
17.
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/8694/cimg0567ba5.jpg
18.
http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/9288/cimg0577mf0.jpg
19.
http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/7043/cimg0581yf2.jpg
20.
http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/8850/cimg0582xd5.jpg

Saint Lazare suburban system L, Versailles Rive Droite.

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/7076/cimg1173ks2.jpg

http://img409.imageshack.us/img409/5432/cimg1174ug7.jpg

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/2176/cimg1179ep4.jpg

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/651/cimg1180qc1.jpg

http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/1534/cimg1182fw2.jpg

I don't like the RER C, it has to many branchs,
Some branchs will be separted from the RER C.
-The branch : les Saules - Versailles Chantier
-The branch : Petit veaux - Massy Plaisanseau -Versailles Chantier

The branch "les Saules - Versailles Chantiers" doesn't exist !
The line stops at "Massy - Palaiseau", it's the branch C2. ;)

^^ I think he/she was taking in future terms

I was wondering what it meant when train's livery included RER/Transilien, does that mean that both SNCF and RATP jointly operate the train?

Not exactly.

Lines A & B of the RER are operated by both RATP (mostly) and SNCF (some branches) with the same type of rolling stock.

Lines C, D, E of the RER and all Transilien lines are operated by SNCF only, with another type of rolling stock, which is sometimes used by the SNCF on both its RER and Transilien lines.

Hope that answers.

yes, and the SNCF realy don't understand the principle behind the RER, their lines suck.

Yes Transillien RER is so a crap that Saint Lazare system is more efficient.

The new transillien maps (RATP RER is include)

http://img112.imageshack.us/img112/2330/transillienmapofficialzm5.jpg

^^ I think he/she was taking in future terms
???

Minato ku often mixes up real projects and his wishes so I assume he wanted to say : :)
"I don't like the RER C, it has to many branchs,
Some branchs should be separted from the RER C."

But my answer is : "How could you remove something that doesn't exist ?" ;)

???

Minato ku often mixes up real projects and his wishes so I assume he wanted to say : :)
"I don't like the RER C, it has to many branchs,
Some branchs should be separted from the RER C."

But my answer is : "How could you remove something that doesn't exist ?" ;)

Well, actually, the branch "massy - les saules" is to be separated from the RER C with the opening of the Tram-train Evry-Massy (new name of the fromer "tangentielle sud") in 2015 or later...

Well, actually, the branch "massy - les saules" is to be separated from the RER C with the opening of the Tram-train Evry-Massy (new name of the fromer "tangentielle sud") in 2015 or later...

I'm sorry but I think you also mix up with the branch C8: Juvisy (or Petit Vaux) - Versailles Chantiers !? The railway station "Les Saules" (branch C2) is in the city of Orly !

The "Tangentielle Ouest/Sud" (tram-train) would go from Versailles-Chantiers to Corbeil-Essonnes via Massy-Palaiseau and Evry-Courcouronnes... ;)

http://perso.orange.fr/quartiergare-epinay/images/TangentielleSUD.jpg

I've got to ask, what is the differences between RER and suburban services?

I know that sounds like a silly question but please humour me.

Also what are the track running arrangements - do they share tracks with other trains for example?

And which RER line is it that can't fit double deckers?

Thanks

Suburban trains stop at big terminals, RER through into Paris.
RER have also a higher frequency.... even if some branch of the SNCF Transillien SNCF RER (Line C, D and E) could have a lowest frequency than Saint Lazare suburban network.
:ohno:

I've got to ask, what is the differences between RER and suburban services?

RER was thought as a metro network that would link the suburbs with the main métro network which already serve the city centre but is far too dense to reach efficiently the suburbs. That means RER stations would be more spaced out, and the city centre would be served by 5 or 6 stations only. This concept was well executed on A and B lines, with former railway lines converted for RER only and new lines created (such as Marne-la-Vallée/Disneyland branch, CDG airport branch). But for obvious economical reasons the next lines (C, D, E) have been created cheaper way by simply giving two tracks on exisiting railway lines for RER use only, though even on these lines the city centre is crossed on RER only infrastructures/tunnels while a normal suburban line would stop at a terminal. Well the poor application of the original RER concept on C, D and E lines, and their discutable operation by the SNCF company often bring people to ask what's the difference with a common commuter train.

Also what are the track running arrangements - do they share tracks with other trains for example?

RER don't share its tracks with other systems - that's the very aim of it - in order to allow higher frequencies (up to 30/33 trains per hour each way on certain sections). Well I know one exception though, line E southeastern extension (2003) runs on 2 tracks only on a few kilometres, therefore have to share it with other trains on this particular section.

And which RER line is it that can't fit double deckers?

All of them but B line. Actually C, D and E lines run only double deckers (though D line on the Melun branch runs single deckers as well) while on A line double deckers represent a bit less than a quarter of the rolling stock.

Hope that answers.

RER don't share its tracks with other systems - that's the very aim of it - in order to allow higher frequencies (up to 30/33 trains per hour each way on certain sections). Well I know one exception though, line E southeastern extension (2003) runs on 2 tracks only on a few kilometres, therefore have to share it with other trains on this particular section.
RER C share its tracks between Viroflay and Saint Quentin with the Transilien and between Versailles and les Saules with freight trains and some TGV.

It is because Transillien RER is a crap.

This concept was well executed on A and B lines, with former railway lines converted for RER only and new lines created. But for obvious economical reasons the next lines (C, D, E) have been created cheaper way by simply giving two tracks on exisiting railway lines for RER use only, though even on these lines the city centre is crossed on RER only infrastructures/tunnels while a normal suburban line would stop at a terminal.
So what is the difference ? On each case, former railway lines have been used and some sections have created !?

RER don't share its tracks with other systems - that's the very aim of it - in order to allow higher frequencies (up to 30/33 trains per hour each way on certain sections). Well I know one exception though, line E southeastern extension (2003) runs on 2 tracks only on a few kilometres, therefore have to share it with other trains on this particular section.
To add what Augusto says, RER A shares its tracks with trains from St Lazare between Nanterre-Université and Poissy/Cergy le Haut.
http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/Sans_titre12.jpg

Same thing for the RER B (today) between Gare du Nord and Mitry-Claye (http://www.modernisation-rerb.com/)
http://www.modernisation-rerb.com/images/schemas/ligne2010_321.jpg

Actually C, D and E lines run only double deckers.
Are you sure ? There is no more Z5300 on the RER C ? Is it new ?

Yes now, there is no more Z5300 on the RER C.
Honestly, SNCF don't know how manage* urbain trains, they should learn this in Tokyo.
*I don't know if it is the good term.:D

They don't need to go in Tokyo, they just have to learn from the RATP right next door...

Marco, Z5300 are not used anymore on C line since 2003.

My mistake for the shared sections I forgot, but in our present case (SNCF's RER) it is a real mess to deal with!

They don't need to go in Tokyo, they just have to learn from the RATP right next door...

:lol: But RATP has also some probleme like the train without longitudinal seats. Seats like these could increase the capacity of the trains.

The RER A with these seats could have 80 000 passengers per hour (Actually only 60 000).

Marco, Z5300 are not used anymore on C line since 2003.
8 carriages Z5300 trains have been replaced by 6 carriages Z5600 trains. Some people run on the platform to catch those trains because they don't expect this unusual lenght.
Usual 8 cariages trains can not been used on the loop service Versailles Chantiers-Verailles rive gauche because of the lack of power supply on the Versailles-Massy section: 6 carriages trains have only 2 motors-cars while the 8 carriages have 4.

RER was thought as a metro network that would link the suburbs with the main métro network which already serve the city centre but is far too dense to reach efficiently the suburbs. That means RER stations would be more spaced out, and the city centre would be served by 5 or 6 stations only. This concept was well executed on A and B lines, with former railway lines converted for RER only and new lines created (such as Marne-la-Vallée/Disneyland branch, CDG airport branch). But for obvious economical reasons the next lines (C, D, E) have been created cheaper way by simply giving two tracks on exisiting railway lines for RER use only, though even on these lines the city centre is crossed on RER only infrastructures/tunnels while a normal suburban line would stop at a terminal. Well the poor application of the original RER concept on C, D and E lines, and their discutable operation by the SNCF company often bring people to ask what's the difference with a common commuter train.



RER don't share its tracks with other systems - that's the very aim of it - in order to allow higher frequencies (up to 30/33 trains per hour each way on certain sections). Well I know one exception though, line E southeastern extension (2003) runs on 2 tracks only on a few kilometres, therefore have to share it with other trains on this particular section.

So basically for lines A & B they built new track alongside existing tracks for a totally dedicated system and the other lines just 'commandiered' existing tracks?

Do any of the RER lines share infrastructure with other RER lines?

I'm sure I've heard lines B & D share tracks under Paris le Gare du Nord.

All of them but B line. Actually C, D and E lines run only double deckers (though D line on the Melun branch runs single deckers as well) while on A line double deckers represent a bit less than a quarter of the rolling stock.

Hope that answers.

Sorry for my misunderstanding but are you saying line B is the only line which can carry double deckers or vice versa?

Btw what is the length of a 12 car RER trainset?

I believe the planned London Crossrail line 1 is going to have 283 metre long platforms for 12 car trains.

Will be very interesting to see how the Paris RER network can be applied to London's version (if it happens).

So basically for lines A & B they built new track alongside existing tracks for a totally dedicated system and the other lines just 'commandiered' existing tracks?
Outside Paris, lines A & B mostly use tracks that were existing but that have been dedicated to this service. Only the Marne la Vallée, Cergy (RER A), aéroport CDG (RER B) and a short section on the southern part of RER D have been build for the RER.
Do any of the RER lines share infrastructure with other RER lines?
I'm sure I've heard lines B & D share tracks under Paris le Gare du Nord.
That's right, RER B & D share the Gare du Nord- Châtelet les Halles section. They don't share platfoms though. If you consider the number of train/hour this is the busiest route.

Sorry for my misunderstanding but are you saying line B is the only line which can carry double deckers or vice versa?

RER B is the only line where there aren't any double deckers train.

Btw what is the length of a 12 car RER trainset?
I don't know but as it has been already said here, 12 cars train are quite uncommon. They can be found only at peak hours on a few services south of Gare de Lyon on RER D. The maximum lenght is 10 cars (RER A & E on MI2N and Alteo trains), 9 cars (RER A MS61 trains), 8 cars (RER A & B on MI79 and MI84), 8 cars (RER C & D)

Sorry for my misunderstanding but are you saying line B is the only line which can carry double deckers or vice versa?

Btw what is the length of a 12 car RER trainset?

I believe the planned London Crossrail line 1 is going to have 283 metre long platforms for 12 car trains.

Will be very interesting to see how the Paris RER network can be applied to London's version (if it happens).

Oops, that was my misunderstanding, I read "which line is it that can stand double deckers" ;)

About the trains length, well your average single decker RER 8 car-train (such as MI 79 and MI 84) is 208 metres long, while a double decker 10 car-train (such as MI 2N) is 224 metres long. Length of the platforms can considerably vary from a line to another. They are generally in a 225/240 m range, but are much longer on D line for instance (300/320 m).

Only the Marne la Vallée, Cergy (RER A), aéroport CDG (RER B) and a short section on the southern part of RER D have been build for the RER.
Not exactly... ;)
The ligne from "Gare du Nord" (more precisely "Aulnay sous Bois") and "Roissy-CDG" has been built in 1976 for the link "RoissyRail" (a former "CDG Express").
This branch has been integrated in the RER B in 1981 and interconnected in 1983.

Not exactly... ;)
The ligne from "Gare du Nord" (more precisely "Aulnay sous Bois") and "Roissy-CDG" has been built in 1976 for the link "RoissyRail" (a former "CDG Express").
This branch has been integrated in the RER B in 1981 and interconnected in 1983.

Hmm, sounds similar to Heathrow Express possibly being integrated into a London Crossrail Line 1.

Oops, that was my misunderstanding, I read "which line is it that can stand double deckers" ;)

About the trains length, well your average single decker RER 8 car-train (such as MI 79 and MI 84) is 208 metres long, while a double decker 10 car-train (such as MI 2N) is 224 metres long. Length of the platforms can considerably vary from a line to another. They are generally in a 225/240 m range, but are much longer on D line for instance (300/320 m).

That's ok, I bet your English is much better then my French ;)

Presume by my calculations the 8 car train carriages are about 26 metres long and the 10 car train carriages are about 22.4 metres long?

Quite a variation, which length do you think works out best?

I think London Thameslink is limited to 20 metre long carriages for whatever reason although that may change with the planned upgrades.

Not exactly... ;)
The ligne from "Gare du Nord" (more precisely "Aulnay sous Bois") and "Roissy-CDG" has been built in 1976 for the link "RoissyRail" (a former "CDG Express").
This branch has been integrated in the RER B in 1981 and interconnected in 1983.
Sure. But just like the Evry and Cergy branches on RER D and A, the CDG branch was designed to be integrated in the RER network from the begining.

Do Regional services share infrastructure with suburban services?

Also what are the different service levels?

This for example:

TGV
Corail
Regional Fast
Regional Stopping
Suburban
RER

??

Also about le Gare du Nord, it apparantley has 44 platforms with four underground. Yet on google earth I can only see about 26 platforms at surface level. Are there more underground or are some platforms split into two?

Thanks again.

Do Regional services share infrastructure with suburban services?

Also what are the different service levels?

This for example:

TGV
Corail
Regional Fast
Regional Stopping
Suburban
RER

Yes, regional services share infrastructure with suburban services. A lot of regional trains can be used by commuters when they call at stations within the suburban area: Paris-le Mans trains call at Versailles and Rambouillet, Paris-le Havre call at Mantes, Paris-Tours call at Dourdan, Paris-Orléans/Tours call at Etampes..
The service level is slightly better, with better seats, curtains, smoking areas and a conductor. There are almost no more conductors on the suburban network as the driver is in charge of closing the doors.
The only TGV that shares its tracks is between Versailles and Valenton for the twice daily Normandy-south est service.

Presume by my calculations the 8 car train carriages are about 26 metres long and the 10 car train carriages are about 22.4 metres long?

Quite a variation, which length do you think works out best?

It's not really a matter of length but a matter of capacity.

To take some examples from the A line, a MI 84 train (single decker, 208 metres, 8 cars) carries 2208 passengers, while a MI 2N train (double decker, 224 metres, 10 cars) carries 2610 passengers. A difference of 400 passengers per train, yet if you compare both trains at the same size, the MI 2N only has 10% more capacity.

yes, and the SNCF realy don't understand the principle behind the RER, their lines suck.

How would you change the concept of their lines?
Like a german city with their famous S-bahn network?
Looking at Berlin all S-bahnlines are going through the city, I know Paris doesn't have a "central station", how would you make the trains run instead?

RER and S bahn is not really the same.
The RER have a bigger capacity and frequency.

Hi! I would like to understand this huge system. As I know a City of Paris in its administrative borders isn't as big as most people in the world think (2 million citizens, area smaller than in Warsaw). But ,when talikng about Paris for example in Poland, it is considered as city with 11 million citizens. Few years ago I discovered that Saint-Germain or La Defense are independent cities. I have few questions: Are the systems of Metro, RER and buses integrated (few operators under one mother-operator??)? Can I buy one magnetic card and travel everywhere? Where does the agglomeration of Paris finish (are there administrative bordes?) ? If lived in Cergy I would say that I live in Paris or Cergy (or La Defense, Saint-Germain)? I just want to understand if Great Paris is a one organism. Thank You and sorry for so many questions....

-In theory all the municipalities who make up greater Paris are independant and on the administrative level, Greater Paris doesn't exist, you only have first the munipalities, then the departements and afterwards the Ile de France region, who doesn't have so much power.
-However socially and on the geographical level, it is all one agglomeration, even if there are some important contrasts on different levels between the city of Paris and the suburbs (but amongst the suburbs as well)
-As for public transports, it is all one system that is managed by two public companies, the RATP and the SNCF meaning that you can very well buy a Cartes Oranges or some tickets that allow you to travel everywhere. But you can also buy some cheaper ones which only transport you in selected zones(there are 6 zones in the Ile de France).

-As for identity, generally in my experience when talking with locals, people will tend to say that they live in their suburb (I live in Cergy, I live in Montreuil). But if they speak with someone from the outside they will have a higher tendency to say that they live in Paris or the urban area. However old people who have lived in one part of the agglo all their life outside of the administrative city of Paris will tend to only associate with their municipality.

Thanks :) Here in Warsaw, (I live in the suburb) we have very funny situation because in the past many cities and villages vere joined to Warsaw so, in opossition to Paris, suburbs are much smaller than Warsaw and some independent cities are located closer to the downtown than some divisions of Warsaw (for example: Agglomeration of Paris has a structure of city, but inside Warsaw borders you can find villages-not independent-with farmers running their own farm) . Warsaw,as a main power, operates the transport and it isn't obligate to operate outside of its borders (but in most suburbs operates). There are plans to create one operator....plans,plans, plans.

Few years ago I discovered that Saint-Germain or La Defense are independent cities.

La Défense is not a city, but just a district, partly on the cities of Nanterre, Courbevoie and Puteaux. ;)

A part from that little mistake you are right about the division in Paris metro: 400 independent cities (= communes) for Paris urban area, 1600 for metro!

Are the systems of Metro, RER and buses integrated (few operators under one mother-operator??)?

There are three companies operating the different systems:
RATP (=Parisian Transportation Authority) -> Métro (100%), RER (partly), Tram (3 lines out of 4), Bus (all Paris and inner suburbs lines)
SNCF (=National Railways) -> RER (partly), Tram (1 line only), suburban lines (100%)
OPTILE (=ILE-de-france Transportation Professional Organisation) -> buses in outer suburbs and metro area

Anyway these 3 companies are coordinated by the Ile-de-France Transportation Authority (STIF), therefore yes, with one card you will be able to go everywhere.

Otherwise I second what Eklips said about identity.

Anyone read Le Train regularly?

I've just got a copy of 'Les lignes de Paris a Lille, Bruxelles et Liege' from Platform 5 mail order. It's quite interesting and has track diagrams of different stations including Lille.

I was just wondering are there any books out there which have track diagrams for Paris and specifically le Gare du Nord?

I am determined to find out where all those 44 tracks are :lol:

New pictures of the NAT

http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/J4D_1710.400.jpg

http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/J4D_1644.400.jpg

http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/J4D_1669.400.jpg

What an earth is a "NAT"?

NAT = "Nouvelle Automotrice Transilien", the new generation of suburban trains that will serve Paris' network by 2009.

Now for the RER use this thread please.

Paris RER Thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=546006)

I like the colourful seats, looks retro

Suburban train picture by De Snor.

Courbevoie station
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g2/De_Snor/DSC03043.jpg

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g2/De_Snor/DSC03038.jpg

Suburban train of Saint Lazare network (serve Courbevoie station)
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g2/De_Snor/DSC03039.jpg

Suburban train at Gare de L'Est international
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g2/De_Snor/DSC03004-1.jpg

I have actually never taken the trancilien, does it work like an RER, are the prices similar?

I don't know I use my ImaginR contacless card. :)

I don't see big difference between Saint Lazare transillien and the RER C and D, the only big difference is that the Transillien Saint Lazare network work better.

A news information panel for suburban train at Saint Lazare railway terminal.
http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/2007-10-14_4698_p600.jpg (http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/2007-10-14_4698_p1200.jpg)

Yes prices are similar. A Transilien is just a RER that stops at a terminus basically :)
As Minato said, some Transiliens are more efficient to get to central Paris than some RERs.

Yes prices are similar. A Transilien is just a RER that stops at a terminus basically :)
As Minato said, some Transiliens are more efficient to get to central Paris than some RERs.

I would said transillien is a RER C or D that stops at a terminal railway.
Because for me RATP RER are more like a subway than a suburban train.

Note that the RATP RER have a smallest network but a highest riderships than SNCF RER.

The southern end of the B line doesn't really work like a metro, we only get a train every 15 minutes or so.

The southern end of the B line doesn't really work like a metro, we only get a train every 15 minutes or so.

Of course due it is due at the low density (It is like the London tube) but in inner suburbs it is 2-3 minutes.

But where you live in les Ulis.
In Massy - Palaiseau station, it should be around 5-6 minutes, exept if you live closer to Bures-sur-Yvette or Orsay stations.
:dunno:

Suburban train of saint Lazare network

-B1MDFiubrk

^^Transilien?
:?

^^Transilien?
:?


The Transilien is the brand name for railway services of the SNCF-owned railway network operating within Paris' Île-de-France région. "Transilien" is a derivative of "Francilien", a term commonly used to describe the inhabitants of the Île-de-France région.

[...]


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transilien

^^I knew the meaning of Francilien and Transilien because I lived in Paris, merci!
;)
I was asking if the train in the video was a Transilien train to Saint Lazare.
:wink2:

Yes it is. :yes:

I was asking if the train in the video was a Transilien train to Saint Lazare.
:wink2:
Why it could not be a Transilien ?

It could be an intercity train, corail.

It could be an intercity train, corail.
No, because the train drives too close to the platforms of the station "Clichy-Levallois" to be an intercity train... ;)
In my opinion, this movie has been taken from an "old" VB2N car...
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/SNCF_VB2N_35_Paris_St_Lazare_26-03-05.jpg

Saint Lazare suburban train

At Marly le Roi station
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2413/1498808560_6d18cb8a2a_o.jpg

^^Old train...
:sly:

Refurbished
So these are good and clean. :)

^^Old train...
:sly:

Oh no not an old car!!!

I don't know what is with some people on SSC, they seem to have a fixation with everything having to be modern, give me an Intercity 125 anyday over those bloody Pendolinionisios.

Oh no not an old car!!!

I don't know what is with some people on SSC, they seem to have a fixation with everything having to be modern, give me an Intercity 125 anyday over those bloody Pendolinionisios.
I meant old looking.
;)
Nowadays, old trains cab be renovated and they look better than new ones.
:okay:

Here is the Plan des zones tarifaires (Fare Zone Map of Greater Paris by the RATP) which includes the RER and Transilien (suburban train) network. Without getting too particular on what is what, both networks represent together the complete suburban/commuter train network that serves to connect Paris with the near and distant suburbs.

As probably mentioned before, the RER lines run from one end of Greater Paris to another, passing through the City-proper (Paris intra-muros) via underground tunnels or quasi-underground passages deeper than street-level grade (which I've seen on some of the branches of line C of the RER within Paris). This through-Paris service allows the RER to be used as an express line within Paris, especially since the RER offers various connections with the metro. Currently, the more recent E line of the RER terminates in Paris intra-muros and only runs in and out one end of it, but it still serves as an express service between the St-Lazare Station-Haussmann area and the Nord Station area.

The Transilien train network trains leave from intercity train stations, outbound to the near and far suburbs, some branches with service only to the far suburbs. This network ressembles more the suburban or commuter train network of most cities in the world. A few lines, like 3 of them, do not originate from a Paris intercity train station so only serve as suburb-to-suburb lines, such as the one departing from La Défense business district. Since you can only take a Transilien train within Paris intra-muros from 5 of the 6 Paris intercity train stations (except Pont Cadinet station which is just a Transilien station), many people who are not from the Paris region are not aware of the Transilien network. The RER network on the otherhand, has several stations throughout Paris intra-muros and appears as a connection/transfer from various metro stations.

Link in case no image appears below http://www.ratp.info/orienter/f_plan.php?loc=reseaux&nompdf=zones&fm=gif&forced=gif&lang=fr&partenaire=ratp
http://www.ratp.info/picts/plans/gif/reseaux/zones.gif

^^^ And here is a link to another map by the Paris RATP which also shows the RER and Transilien network in Greater Paris, but unlike the previous map, it also shows the métro, tram lines, and the TVM line in the south of Greater Paris (a very long bus line on a dedicated right-of-way lane). This map is also more of a geographic representation of the lines rathern than a schematic map.
Link: http://www.ratp.info/orienter/f_plan.php?nompdf=rer_idf_geo&loc=secteur&fm=pdf

Thanks.

Pont Cardinet station

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Pont-Cardinet_quais_1.JPG/800px-Pont-Cardinet_quais_1.JPG

Tis platform was used as a link between te RER C (Levallois Pereire station) and Pont Cardinet.
This link was closed in 1996 due at a low ridership.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4a/Pont-Cardinet_quai_abandonn%C3%A9.JPG/800px-Pont-Cardinet_quai_abandonn%C3%A9.JPG

Great architecture and art leave a taste of the glory days of rail travel in Paris
20 January 2008
Sunday Independent

The old steam engines that he painted, belching smoke into the Parisian sky, are, of course, long gone. But take an unusual sight-seeing tour of Paris’s Gare Saint-Lazare and you can picture the scene that the great Impressionist Claude Monet painted 131 years ago.

Monet became fascinated by trains. He filled 12 canvasses with Saint-Lazare, adhering to his philosophy of repetition of the same theme. To the outsider, this may seem curious but to Monet, different skies equalled different light equalled different colours.

Paris’s great old railway stations might seem an odd destination for the tourist. But they offer a beguiling mix of architectural splendour, a throbbing hub of humanity with all its attendant expressions and a veritable pot-pourri of historical connections.

A potential general knowledge quiz question is: how many stations are there in Paris? The general theory is six, but it is incorrect. First, the obvious ones …

Gare Saint-Lazare: Monet’s exquisite painting, smoke pouring into the blue sky from one locomotive entering the station and another leaving while another train stands silent in the station, is a classic. Pretty much the same building with its part glass roof covering the tracks exists today. Built in 1837 for the line from Paris to St Germain-en-Laye in the western suburbs, it was Paris’s first train station, re-built in 1843 by Alfred Armand and extended 10 years later. The present frontal building, with hotel attached, was erected in 1889. Here trains run to Normandy and Dieppe.

Gare d’Austerlitz: This is where trains leave for southwest France, Spain and Portugal. The station was named after the site of Napoleon’s great battle against Austro-Russian forces, in Austria, in 1805. It was first conceived in 1840 for the Orleans Company, but rebuilt from 1865-68. Its impressive steel and glass roof is largely screened.

Gare de l’Est: Built from 1847-1850, it was originally named the Gare de Strasbourg, its chief destination. Its name was changed in 1854 and a major extension with an east wing added from 1924-31. The main departure hall is today a sumptuous glass-roofed interior with impressive columns.

The German high-speed ICE trains run here from the eastern France-German border. On the front of the building are statues representing the cities of Strasbourg and Verdun, and a poignant painting, by Alfred Herter, hangs in the western-wing ticket hall depicting soldiers departing from the station for the front in 1914. There are representations of 32 important cities in eastern France decorating the access arcade.

Gare de Lyon: From here modern TGV trains whisk you to Marseille on the Mediterranean in exactly three hours. It was opened in splendour in 1900. Festooned in flags, the Impressionists have left us a vivid image of how it must have looked upon its opening.

The gem of the Gare de Lyon is Le Train Bleu restaurant on the floor above the station concourse. Here, in the Edwardian 1930s, travellers would lunch in elegance in a sprawling room decorated with 40 paintings, depicting destinations from the station, before boarding the overnight train south. The Mediterranean features prominently in the murals. Under the expert eye of architect Marius Toudoire, it took 30 artists to paint the room in Belle Epoque style. It is exactly the same today as when it first opened in 1901.

Gare du Nord: This is where you arrive on the Eurostar from London, the Thalys train from Brussels and the express train from Cologne and Amsterdam. Its origins date to 1846 but, just 11 years later, it was decided to build a station three times larger.

Construction, under German-born architect Jacques Hittorff, who also designed the Champs-Elysées garden and two fountains on the Place de la Concorde, began in 1861 and lasted five years.

A mix of neoclassicism and 19th-century new metal structures, one of its greatest sights is the nine statues that adorn the front of the building, with names of the most important destinations from the station.

Gare Montparnasse: This is beyond dispute the ugliest of Paris’s stations. It was built originally in 1840 but completely rebuilt after the Second World War. Yet it has one major claim to fame. In 1895, a locomotive and the first coach it was pulling, failed to stop and plunged off the track from the first floor of the station onto the street below.

Those are Paris’s six major stations, but there is another, the little known Gare de Bercy on the east side. Here, you can catch an overnight sleeper to Italy. Close to the station is a fascinating, renovated area that contains the location of the old wine distribution centre for Paris. In a modernised shopping street, you can go wine tasting: try Chai 33, for a good example.

Lastly, the station that is no more although the building has been splendidly revived – the Gare d’Orsay. It opened in 1900 to coincide with the Great Exhibition and was the first railway station in the world to have electric power. Until 1939, it was the terminus for destinations in southwest France but then was closed to long-distance traffic.

What sealed its fate were its short platforms in a modern era. Yet it was still used as a collection point for the despatch of parcels to prisoners in the Second World War and, after the war, as a reception centre for liberated prisoners.

Today, the old Gare d’Orsay is revived as the Musée D’Orsay, re-designed in 1977 and opened in 1986. It houses France’s finest collection of Impressionist paintings.

Suitably, on a floor high up that overlooks the Seine and the sumptuous city, you can see close up one of Monet’s beautiful paintings of La Gare Saint-Lazare.

[size=4][b]

Gare Montparnasse: This is beyond dispute the ugliest of Paris’s stations. It was built originally in 1840 but completely rebuilt after the Second World War. Yet it has one major claim to fame. In 1895, a locomotive and the first coach it was pulling, failed to stop and plunged off the track from the first floor of the station onto the street below.

an old picture of the accident mentioned there...

http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/pic/NIM/PL086~Accident-of-Montparnasse-Station-Posters.jpg

I live at 300 m from the "pont de l'Europe" (Europe bridge), from which you have a beautiful point of view of Gare Saint-Lazare.

They forget Pont Carndinet station, it is only a suburban rail station in Saint Lazare network.
Paris has 8 railway station if we exclud the RER and subway

Musee d'Orsay is always a train station. The station is just underground for the RER C but this line use the old tunnels of the old Orsay station.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3d/PARIS-RER-Ligne-C-rame-seri.jpg/800px-PARIS-RER-Ligne-C-rame-seri.jpg

Interesting, pity no photos.

Gare du Nord

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050414/RIMG0220.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050414/RIMG0224.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050414/RIMG0228.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050414/RIMG0231.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050414/RIMG0221.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050414/RIMG0243.jpg

Gare de Lyon

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050416/PARIS1287.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050416/PARIS1273.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050416/PARIS1246.jpg

http://www.globalphotos.org/paris/20050416/PARIS1252.jpg

They forget Pont Carndinet station, it is only a suburban rail station in Saint Lazare network.
Paris has 8 railway station if we exclud the RER and subway

Musee d'Orsay is always a train station. The station is just underground for the RER C but this line use the old tunnels of the old Orsay station.

Minato ku, don't over do it. This article is referring to intercity train stations (grandes lignes), which all 7 mentioned train stations are. If you want to add Pont Cadinet station then you are adding a station that is unlike the rest. Remember as a very young child in grade school how you had to circle the item that was out of place: banana, orange, egg, and apple...you had to circle the egg. Well no intercity train stops in Pont Cadinet to pick up people...you have to go to St-Lazare, because Pont Cadinet is only for suburban trains. And Musée d'Orsay may still use its underground tunnels for the RER but without any intercity trains running through the same underground tracks it can't be included in this list.

La Defense
Suburban trains and light rails platforms.

VdKnlLM2m_M

Des Photos

Poissy A5
http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r293/rcammalleri/TR/P1100036.jpg

Versailles - Rive Gauche C5
Chateau de Versailles

Double-decker RER rolling stock
http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r293/rcammalleri/TR/P1100146.jpg

Thanks but there is a special thread for the RER, at least the RER A and B.

Gare Saint Lazare.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3041/2402347939_368634b599_o.jpg

What is the average speed of suburban line trains?

The average speed of a suburban line ? I really don't know, that's very hard to know.

Puteaux station

Trains of La Defense - La Verriere line http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-U_17.gif

http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/8099/cimg6557xz9.jpg

http://img519.imageshack.us/img519/5803/cimg6558uq6.jpg

T2 light rail
http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/5782/cimg6560sr6.jpg

Thanks but there is a special thread for the RER, at least the RER A and B.

Oh! But i couldnt find the link to that thread. Where is it??

It's in the Subways and Urban Transport section http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=546006

hello everyone i am going to try to bring back this thread

i wonder if people in paris which terminals do you use to go from work to home or home to work or beyond?

It depend
People who live in the northern suburbs take the suburban train at Gare du Nord,
Gare Saint Lazare for the western suburbs,
Gare de l'Est for the easter suburbs
Gare de Lyon for the southeastern suburbs
Gare Montparnasse for the southwestern suburbs.
In an other way more suburbanite take the RER than the suburban trains.

Me, I live in the subway network, so usualy I never take the suburban train for
Sometimes I use the Saint Lazare suburban network because it is really scenic. :)

The new transillien rolling stock that will run in Est, Nord and Saint Lazare network.
It is called NAT or Francillenne.

http://www.britorail.net/vie-ferroviaire-reelle/nouvelle-automotrice-transilien-26-27-10-2006.php

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nouvelle_automotrice_transilien

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_05.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_06.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_19.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_12.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_13.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_16.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_18.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/NAT_Grand_Palais_10.jpg/799px-NAT_Grand_Palais_10.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Nat_Interieur2.JPG/800px-Nat_Interieur2.JPG

Thanks at edubejar.

^^Très joli!
:okay:
Is it already working? In which line?
:?

No, the first trains will run in 2009.

^^Très joli!
:okay:
Is it already working? In which line?
:?
What you can see is only a mockup. The aesthetic is subject to change. They are going to be wider than the trains they'll replace thanks to the shortness of the carriages.
They are likely to be found first in Gare du Nord and Saint Lazare stations.
In my opinion they should consider shorter train also for evening services. Short one level trains are much easier to secure when all passengers are concentrated in 2 carriages. This is already like that on line U, where 2 carriages on 4 are closed at night. And those short trains could be used during peak hour on some small shuttle services like Paris Montparnasse-Sevres or Saint-Lazare-Nanterre-U.

What you can see is only a mockup. The aesthetic is subject to change. They are going to be wider than the trains they'll replace thanks to the shortness of the carriages.
They are likely to be found first in Gare du Nord and Saint Lazare stations.
In my opinion they should consider shorter train also for evening services. Short one level trains are much easier to secure when all passengers are concentrated in 2 carriages. This is already like that on line U, where 2 carriages on 4 are closed at night. And those short trains could be used during peak hour on some small shuttle services like Paris Montparnasse-Sevres or Saint-Lazare-Nanterre-U.


I hope it only changes for the better. I really like the interior :)

Nanterre Universite http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-a_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif

Nanterre Prefecture station was build in 1970 it is an interchange station between the RER A St Germain branch and Transillien St Lazare, Poissy - Cergy line.
The station is under in reconstruction.


http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/7061/nanterreuniversitexv2.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/4763/cimg7851dm8.jpg

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/8562/cimg7854ro8.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/5050/cimg7855kl1.jpg

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/7702/cimg7858hi8.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/961/cimg7859zp0.jpg

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/856/cimg7861tw6.jpg

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/16/cimg7863kx2.jpg

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/8619/cimg7864ab5.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/1035/cimg7865ky6.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/7702/cimg7866vd4.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/4669/cimg7867th9.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/8081/cimg7868lz5.jpg

http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/1826/cimg7869rs5.jpg

Meudon http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-N_17.gif

Station of Montparnasse suburban system

http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/2788/meudonpo9.jpg

http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/5277/cimg6714sk4.jpg
You see the famous "Petit Gris" the worst train type in Paris suburban network. Build in the 1960's 1970's and hated by 99% of commuters.
http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/7508/cimg6715zi3.jpg

http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/8532/cimg6716tx3.jpg

http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/2419/cimg6717to7.jpg

^^ What is wrong with that type of train? They look a little dated, but not bad to me.

Slow, dirty, dated, too warm, uncomfortable...

Many of these trains will be remplaced by this type of train.
Here a mockup.
http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_06.jpg

http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/7826/dsc00049hp3.jpg

http://img364.imageshack.us/img364/4074/dsc00051ar5.jpg

http://img361.imageshack.us/img361/2963/dsc00074ss5.jpg

http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/7942/dsc00076fs0.jpg

http://img361.imageshack.us/img361/2937/dsc00078ew7.jpg

http://img364.imageshack.us/img364/7227/dsc00079oo3.jpg

http://img361.imageshack.us/img361/8102/dsc00082jp5.jpg

http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/1566/dsc00086ve3.jpg

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/222/dsc00091eo7.jpg

http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/2673/dsc00092fy1.jpg

http://img364.imageshack.us/img364/8400/dsc00093bz0.jpg

It's always great to see busy train systems. It reminds me what real transit systems look like. :lol:

Yeh but it was weird, I took these picture in low peak hours.

Seeing this picture (http://img361.imageshack.us/img361/2963/dsc00074ss5.jpg), I understand why.
The traffic was perturbated (strike) a train every 25 minutes between La Defense and St Lazare instead of a train every 5 minutes. :ohno:

La Garenne Colombe http://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/IdF2-L_17.gif

http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/7951/dsc01724nq9.jpg

http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/1298/dsc01725ne5.jpg

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7131/dsc01726pg7.jpg

http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/9782/dsc01729ux7.jpg

http://img253.imageshack.us/img253/584/dsc01730cu5.jpg

http://img60.imageshack.us/img60/7006/dsc01732vv8.jpg

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/2640/dsc01734zi3.jpg

So there are three tiers to Greater Paris' rail transit system: Metro, RER, and Suburban?

^^ Don't forget the trams.

When you say suburban rail system most North Americans think of low density suburban tracts of housing and shopping malls. In Europe the suburbs mean something different, mostly medium density apartment blocks, traditional 5-7 story main street building, as well as some single family homes as well. So suburban rail in Paris is well used, not only to get to downtown, but also to travel to other 'suburban' parts of Paris, not to mention the aeroport. The Greater Paris metro/rail/tram system should be a model to other cities.

paris has all types of suburbs rich middle class industrial gettho poor whatever it big diversity mix

I'm just wondering what percentage of Greater Paris residents live, let's say about 500m away from any kind of public transit station/stop? I know this figure is hard to determine, so any kind of educated guess will do. Thanks

About half?

paris has all types of suburbs rich middle class industrial gettho poor whatever it big diversity mix

True, though it should be recognised that the best coverage is probably found in the middle class neighbourhoods. The wealthy neighbourhoods in the west of Paris have thin coverage because they are mostly thinly populated (=large gardens & green surroundings) plus in the case of the "old rich" parts of Paris herself there's some resistance to public transport. For example, the wealthy citizens of Paris 16 recently blocked plans to prolong tram line 2 into their neigbourhood. In the poorest suburbs there has, for political reasons one suspects, until recently been reluctance to boost public transport. This is one (but only one) reason for the exasperation of the inhabitants in these neighbourhoods: many of them cannot afford cars, so without RER/metro/tram they are stranded and, often, unemployable. There are, however, now big plans to improve their access - including through a large rail beltway running around Paris through the northern, eastern and southern suburbs.

Also - if you provide decent transport in any area within a 100 years it will usually become middle class.

Also - if you provide decent transport in any area within a 100 years it will usually become middle class.

Wow, one hundred years! Where did you come up with that timeline?

I would say within 10 years things would be better.

Wow, one hundred years! Where did you come up with that timeline?

Well I have no idea, and I thought the socio-demographic change would occur within a few decades, but to be safe I said within a century, as thats how long the transport system has been around for.

I'm just wondering what percentage of Greater Paris residents live, let's say about 500m away from any kind of public transit station/stop? I know this figure is hard to determine, so any kind of educated guess will do. Thanks

If we include the bus system as well, the figure must be really high. I doubt someone has the answer though.

I guess I'm trying to make the point that Parisians are very well served by public transit.

Well, if you ask anyone who have to use it daily, he'll tell you that it's far from being perfect.

There's not a city on Earth where you will find an inhabitant that'll say the public transport in their is absolutely perfect. People like complaining, no matter how lucky they are.

Yeah and then Australians moan about their public transport systems..... compared with what we have in Auckland!

Maybe because basically, every city on Earth is yet to accomplish major progress in terms of public transportation.

or because if you build public transportation, more people will travel on it, and it'll just be congested ;) (this is an anti-roads argument in the UK - if you build it, lots of people will use it and it'll just get congested)

To be honest, there's some sense in that (though it implies you can never build yourself out of congestion, which isn't quite the case) - we have better transport networks these days than 200 years ago, and we travel a lot more now than then.

Yeah its just a supply and demand phenomenon. Its like other products. Produce more stuff, the price goes down, more people can afford it and buy it, price balances out again.

http://img266.imageshack.us/img266/7826/dsc00049hp3.jpg

http://img364.imageshack.us/img364/4074/dsc00051ar5.jpg



Just to doublecheck, are those pictures of La Defense station?

And would you happen to know if there are any pics floating around of any of the RER lines and/or stations being constructed?

^^ yep, this is La Défense station.

For your second request, no RER line is being constructed at the moment.

Thanks but there is a special thread for the RER, at least the RER A and B.

Gare Saint Lazare.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3041/2402347939_368634b599_o.jpg

Looks like paradise to me!

NAT = "Nouvelle Automotrice Transilien", the new generation of suburban trains that will serve Paris' network by 2009.

Paris has a superb public transport nework.

^^ yep, this is La Défense station.

For your second request, no RER line is being constructed at the moment.

Sorry, I didn't phrase that question correctly. What I meant was, are there any old historical pictures of the original RER stations or lines being built (like La Defense, Auber, Nation, etc.)?

Sorry, I didn't phrase that question correctly. What I meant was, are there any old historical pictures of the original RER stations or lines being built (like La Defense, Auber, Nation, etc.)?
Two 1970 pictures taken from www.amtuir.org
Amtuir is an association that supports the opening of a Paris Transport museum.
http://www.amtuir.org/03_htu_generale/htu_8_1959_1984/images/ratp_74051bis.jpg
http://www.amtuir.org/03_htu_generale/htu_8_1959_1984/images/ratp_74073ter.jpg

The new transillien rolling stock that will run in Est, Nord and Saint Lazare network.
It is called NAT or Francillenne.

http://www.britorail.net/vie-ferroviaire-reelle/nouvelle-automotrice-transilien-26-27-10-2006.php

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nouvelle_automotrice_transilien

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_05.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_06.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_19.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_12.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_13.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_16.jpg

http://www.britorail.net/images/nat_maquette_18.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/NAT_Grand_Palais_10.jpg/799px-NAT_Grand_Palais_10.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1b/Nat_Interieur2.JPG/800px-Nat_Interieur2.JPG

Thanks at edubejar.
amazing! :okay:

what is its speed? When will they be replaced with the current trains completely at the other lines?

The northwestern hub station of Ermont Eaubonne recently rebuilt.

http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2-H_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2-J_17.gif

http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/6585/ermontyd8.jpg


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Entree_sud_01.jpg/450px-Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Entree_sud_01.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2f/Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Facade_sud_01.jpg/799px-Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Facade_sud_01.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bd/Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Facade_sud_03.jpg/799px-Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Facade_sud_03.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f7/Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Interieur_01.jpg/799px-Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Interieur_01.jpg

Scroll >>>
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c9/Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Pano_01.jpg/1600px-Gare_d_Ermont_-_Eaubonne_-_Pano_01.jpg

nice station. How are Intercity trains of France. I mean non HSR.

Even if it is not the right thread, I will post intercity trains from Paris...

"Corail Teoz" (now replaced by the TGV Est) in Paris-Gare de l'Est departing to Strasbourg:
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/7/48.jpg

"Corail Intercités" from Cherbourg arriving in Paris-St Lazare:
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/7/432.jpg

A "V2N" train in Paris-Gare de Lyon departing to Laroche-Migennes:
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/1/451.jpg

A "BGC", same destination from Paris-Bercy :
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/9/868.jpg

hi,
I was looking for infos about the LGV est, but wasn't able to find a thread... I'd like to know the status of the line between strabsbourg and munich! can you help me?
thanks

Marco

^^ actually we need such a thread as well ...

What is the largest station in Paris?

The LGV Est goes from Paris to Strasbourg - any future line or upgrades from Strasbourg to Munich will have a different project name (presumably a German one!)...

^^ In terms of what ? Area ? Number of tracks ? Number of national/suburban passengers ?

The Gare du Nord (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gare_du_Nord) with 31 tracks and around 180 million travellers per year (the busiest station in Europe and the third-busiest in the world in terms of passengers) is a good candidate...

Overground station:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e1/DSC_7230-voies-de-la-gare-d.jpg/800px-DSC_7230-voies-de-la-gare-d.jpg

International part:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bb/Gare_du_Nord_0005.jpg/800px-Gare_du_Nord_0005.jpg

Suburban hall:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Gare_du_Nord_Nouveau_pole_%C3%A9change_banlieue.JPG/450px-Gare_du_Nord_Nouveau_pole_%C3%A9change_banlieue.JPG

Underground station (RER):
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f4/Gare_du_Nord_aCRW_1361.jpg/800px-Gare_du_Nord_aCRW_1361.jpg

very nice... Are there 1st class and 2nd class cars at regular intercity trains or all trains have same class of cars?

The intercity (TGV, Corail) and regional train (TER) have 1st and 2nd class.
The Parisian suburban trains have only the 2nd class.

could please you show also interior photos if you can find?

Even if it is not the right thread, I will post intercity trains from Paris...

"Corail Teoz" (now replaced by the TGV Est) in Paris-Gare de l'Est departing to Strasbourg:
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/7/48.jpg

"Corail Intercités" from Cherbourg arriving in Paris-St Lazare:
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/7/432.jpg

A "V2N" train in Paris-Gare de Lyon departing to Laroche-Migennes:
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/1/451.jpg

A "BGC", same destination from Paris-Bercy :
http://www.photos-de-trains.net/photos/9/868.jpg

Are all those locomotives French made?

First and third locos look like they are French made.

TCDD used to operated French made electric locos
http://www.trainsofturkey.com/w/pmwiki.php/Traction/E4000
http://www.trainsofturkey.com/w/pmwiki.php/Traction/E4000

In the picture of "Corail Teoz" to Strasbourg, I see DB carriages on the right of pic

^^ DB Intercity trains ran on the Paris-Munich, Paris-Stuttgart and Paris-Frankfurt routes.

First and third locos look like they are French made.

The second one is french made too : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SNCF_Class_BB_26000

The TER (last picture) is built by Bombardier, a canadian company, but probably in a french factory.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autorail_%C3%A0_grande_capacit%C3%A9

Isn't RER the suburban Paris rail network?

^^ The answer is on the first post of this thread... ;)

More info here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transilien)

could please you show also interior photos if you can find?

A Z5300 (built from 1965 to 1975), some have been refurbished in 1979 and later:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a7/Z5355lar.jpg

The version refurbished in 1979:
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/electric/emu/Z5300/TIR_5300_3.jpg

The version refurbished in the 90's:
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/electric/emu/Z5300/060419-176.jpg



A Z6400 (built from 1976 to 1979) refurbished in livery "Ile de France":
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/db/SNCF_Z_6534_Paris_St_Lazare.JPG/800px-SNCF_Z_6534_Paris_St_Lazare.JPG
http://metro.free.fr/big/450.jpg

A Z6400 refurbished in livery "GCO":
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=13487882&postcount=3



A Z20500 (built from 1988 to 1998), some have been refurbished like the Z20900:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Z20500lm.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/Z_20500_-_Motrice_salle_haute_01.jpg/799px-Z_20500_-_Motrice_salle_haute_01.jpg



A Z22500 (built from 1996 to 2000):
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/00/Z22500_tore_gretz.JPG/800px-Z22500_tore_gretz.JPG
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6c/RerE_interieur_Z22500_3.jpg/800px-RerE_interieur_Z22500_3.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a5/RerE_interieur_Z22500.jpg/800px-RerE_interieur_Z22500.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/RerE_interieur2.JPG/800px-RerE_interieur2.JPG



A Z20900 (built from 2001 to 2003):
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/63/Ermont_-_Gare_de_Cernay_03.jpg/799px-Ermont_-_Gare_de_Cernay_03.jpg
http://hynamore.info/tdv/portfolio/photos_gdes/357.jpg



A RIB refurbished:
http://www.stif.info/IMG/jpg/RIB-RIO_2_-2.jpg
http://www.stif.info/IMG/jpg/RIB-RIO_renov_int_salle_a-2.jpg



A VB2N refurbished:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0b/Gare_de_Franconville_-_Le_Plessis-Bouchard_05.jpg/799px-Gare_de_Franconville_-_Le_Plessis-Bouchard_05.jpg
http://www.stif.info/IMG/jpg/VB2N_renov_int_salle_haute_gamma_-3.jpg



A B 82500 or AGC/BGC/BiBi between Paris and Provins (Transilien service: 95km from Paris-Gare de l'Est):
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/08/TransilienP_B82500_Pantin.JPG/800px-TransilienP_B82500_Pantin.JPG
http://lyonrail.free.fr/Grandes%20photos/int-bgc.jpg



Below, trains for long-distance commuter services outside Ile de France region such as Paris-Laroche Migennes, Paris-Rouen, Paris-Amiens, Paris-Château Thierry or Paris-Le Mans so it is no more Transilien services but TER services...

A VO2N between Paris and Amiens (130km from Paris-Gare du Nord), it looks like the VB2N:
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/car/regional/VO2N/c-rth2002-10-23_10-59-10.jpg

2nd class:
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/car/regional/VO2N/SNCF_VO2N_Picardie_7.jpg

1st class:
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/car/regional/VO2N/SNCF_VO2N_Picardie_5.jpg



EDIT: A V2N between Paris and Sens/Laroche-Migennes (112/154km from Paris-Gare de Lyon):
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/car/regional/V2N/V2N-BDxe-RegionCentre.jpg

2nd class:
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/car/regional/V2N/SNCF_TER_V2N_Refurbished_4.jpg

1st class:
http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/car/regional/V2N/SNCF_TER_V2N_Refurbished_2.jpg



A Z26500 or TER 2N NG between Paris and Beauvais (80km from Paris-Gare du Nord) :
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Gare_de_Creil_CRW_0819.jpg/800px-Gare_de_Creil_CRW_0819.jpg
http://lyonrail.free.fr/Grandes%20photos/int-2nng.jpg

wonderful pix...

I have some question.

Are all of these suburban trains currently in the service?
Doesn't Alstrom produce locomotives anymore and just focused on High speeds?
I have been to Paris but couldn't travel in France. Is the railway most dominant transporation in france (beside airways of course) or you have some intercity buses as well?

Are all of these suburban trains currently in the service?
Yes.


Doesn't Alstrom produce locomotives anymore and just focused on High speeds?
No they produce locomotives like the BB27300 for VB2N refurbished trains:
http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/2007-02-09_9282_BB27312_au_BAN_65863_DAPO_p1200.jpg



I have been to Paris but couldn't travel in France. Is the railway most dominant transporation in france (beside airways of course) or you have some intercity buses as well?
No, intercity buses are not so developed such as in UK or US...

so, France and Germany are very similar in the terms of transportation then... Very developed railway system.

Actually, yes: the Germans normally refer to the project as the "Magistrale Paris-Budapest". The LGV-Est is, from the perspective of EU planning, part the Trans-European Networks, namely the main rail axis France-Munich-Vienna-Budapest.

The problem is, this axis is not really taking shape. It's used as a pretext for milking EU funds, but time and again railway investments - or mere upgrades of existing lines - in Germany and Austria are taken hostage to local political pressures. A true high-speed (or, just, high capacity) axis between Paris and Budapest would surely pass such small towns as Metz, Ulm and Salzburg on dedicated new lines without having to wast precious time on the old tracks of the inner cities, but... in reality this is the case only for Metz. Conversely, global metropolises such as Ulm and Augsburg cannot be bypassed. Never ever. The mayors wouldn't accept this! :nuts:

A V2N between Paris and Chartres (90km from Paris Montparnasse (?)):

Nice pictures.
But I don't think that there are any V2N on this line. I've never seen them at Montparnasse station.

But there are some works on this axis in progress and in planning:

-completion of LGV est to Strasbourg
-new rhine bridge near Strasbourg
-Stuttgart 21 (includes new through station under the town instead of the dead-end station, a tunnel through the city, a tunnel from the city to the airport of Stuttgart)
-HSL Stuttgart-Ulm
-new through station in Wien (i think there's a thread about it)

^^ Oh, sure. You could also have added the relatively ambitious renovation strategy for the Rhine Valley Railway between Karlsruhe and Basle, part of which will be included in the "Paris-Budapest Magistrale".

What I simply meant to say is, in French eyes trans-European networks are about dedicated tracks intended for trips longer than, say, 400 km. Making a new railway line between Stuttgart and Ulm - no matter how modern, fast and expensive - is more about local transport than about Paris-Budapest. The proof is, each time you drive through a city centre you lose at least 10 minutes. Hence, if the main purpose of a new line were to get faster from the Rhine Valley to Hungary then that line would no pass through "die Ulmer Innenstadt". Quod Erat Demonstrandum.

@hans: France topography and settlement structure is very different from say the one in Austria, Southern Germany and Hungary. In Central Europe the population is very widespread withing a lot of midsized towns and cities. We have much less space, than France has, hence new rail corridors are hardly possible, so the existing ones have to be upgraded. Unlike France we don't have two or three huge metro areas and hardly anything in between (I'm exagerating, but I think you would agree). Hence it is absolutely necessary to serve cities like Ulm or Linz, to make the lines profitable and effizient. The truth is, the number of passengers who'd travel the whole distance Budapest-Paris, is rather small, compared to those who just travel a segement.

Btw. in Austria there are currently 35km of tunnels under construction which are part of the magistrale project (fitted for max speed of 250km/h). So it's a bit of a joke to claim that only France actually works on this project.

Is the railway most dominant transporation in france or you have some intercity buses as well?

No, intercity buses are not so developed such as in UK or US...

Well, I would qualify this answer... In fact all main cities and towns are linked by railway, so yes it is the most dominant public transportation here and sometimes the only one when you want to travel to these places. But, over the last decades many small stations have been closed, particularly in the countryside (for profitability reasons), therefore the service in these areas have been replaced by coaches (offen run by SNCF).

Do the doors of Z5300 trains fail to close ever?

But I don't think that there are any V2N on this line. I've never seen them at Montparnasse station.
You must be right. ;)
Actually, I didn't recognized the railway station ; now I guess it is the "Gare de Lyon". I knew that the regions "Picardie" (Amiens), "Haute Normandie" (Rouen) and "Bourgogne" (Sens/Laroche-Migennes) owned these kind of trains and I was thinking that it was also the case for the region "Centre" (Chartres), may be it is not true...

are all trains like these medium range trains?

http://www.railfaneurope.net/pix/fr/car/regional/VO2N/c-rth2002-10-23_10-59-10.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Gare_de_Creil_CRW_0819.jpg/800px-Gare_de_Creil_CRW_0819.jpg

Well, I would qualify this answer... In fact all main cities and towns are linked by railway, so yes it is the most dominant public transportation here and sometimes the only one when you want to travel to these places. But, over the last decades many small stations have been closed, particularly in the countryside (for profitability reasons), therefore the service in these areas have been replaced by coaches (offen run by SNCF).
Actually, I don't know what Kuvvaci exactly means by "Intercity buses" !?
I have understood his question as "Do you have some buses between Paris and Lille/Rouen/Reims... ?"
So what you say is ok but it is not a high frequency service between 2 main cities as you can find in UK (every 15mn).
What you can find in France, except these TER services, are suburban express services operated by coaches that use highways (ex Express A14 (http://www.express-a14.com/), La Navette Aix-Marseille (http://www.navetteaixmarseille.com/index2.html) or Express Voiron/Grenoble/Crolles (http://www.transisere.fr/horaires_ligne/index.asp?rub_code=6&thm_id=133&gpl_id=&lign_id=73&sens=1&laDate=06%2F11%2F2008&pa_id=12806)).
Other intercity services (for example: Grenoble-Nice (http://www.payan-voyages.com/transport/pdf/ler_h04.pdf), Grenoble-Genève (http://www.vfd.fr/ligne_geneve_grenoble.pdf)) have a very low frequency...

Do they still manufacture locomotives with diamond-shaped pantographs?

Isn't RER the suburban Paris rail network?

There are two systems: the RER and the Transilien. (but 3 RER lines: RER C, RER D and RER E are also considered part of Transilien). The system is really complicated and hard to describe in only a few words. Basically (but this is a rough approximation) RER offers more a metro style service with good frequencies and station density in the inner suburbs and some nearby outer suburbs. The Transilien go further than the RER. They tend not to stop in the inner suburbs, but once in the outer suburbs (where there's no RER service anymore) they stop frequently. The trains are quite fast and can reach 140 km/h and can travel sometimes up to 25 km or more without stopping, e.g. Paris Est - Chelles (RER E terminus), or Paris Lyon - Melun (Melun is also on the RER D line). However there are Transilien lines which do not operate like that, especially in the La Défense network.

By the way, today there is a major strike and almost all Transilien and RER traffic is suspended. (except for RER A and part of RER B which don't belong to SNCF).

@hans: France topography and settlement structure is very different from say the one in Austria, Southern Germany and Hungary. In Central Europe the population is very widespread withing a lot of midsized towns and cities. We have much less space, than France has, hence new rail corridors are hardly possible, so the existing ones have to be upgraded. Unlike France we don't have two or three huge metro areas and hardly anything in between (I'm exagerating, but I think you would agree). Hence it is absolutely necessary to serve cities like Ulm or Linz, to make the lines profitable and effizient. The truth is, the number of passengers who'd travel the whole distance Budapest-Paris, is rather small, compared to those who just travel a segement.

Btw. in Austria there are currently 35km of tunnels under construction which are part of the magistrale project (fitted for max speed of 250km/h). So it's a bit of a joke to claim that only France actually works on this project.

It is also the case that local politicians have less power in France. The central government still takes all major decisions, although France has become more and more de-centralized in the past 10 years.

There are two systems: the RER and the Transilien. (but 3 RER lines: RER C, RER D and RER E are also considered part of Transilien).
RER A (branchs Cergy/poissy) and RER B (branch CDG) are operated by SNCF so these RER are also "Transilien". As I said, it has been explained by Minato ku on the first post of this thread (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=13459189&postcount=1)...


Basically (but this is a rough approximation) RER offers more a metro style service with good frequencies and station density in the inner suburbs and some nearby outer suburbs.
[...]

As you say, it's a rough approximation... ;)
Regarding the frequencies and the stops we can not claim: "RER is like this, Transilien is like that" ; it depends. The only thing we can say is the RER (in a normal way) goes through Paris and doesn't stop at a terminus railway station so it's an hybrid system between a subway and a suburban train. The only exception is the RER E that stops (for the moment) near Paris St Lazare...


By the way, today there is a major strike and almost all Transilien and RER traffic is suspended.
http://www.tourmagazine.fr/Greve-SNCF-davantage-de-trains-sur-le-reseau-Transilien_a8093.html

Saint Lazare suburban train

At Marly le Roi station
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2413/1498808560_6d18cb8a2a_o.jpg

What type of train is this? It looks newer than Z5300s.

These is a Z6400. Those trains are almost as old as the Z5300 but much more reliables. They were ordered to replace the last trains operating with 750V third rail on the Saint Lazare network, when the conversion from the 750V third rail to the 25kV overhead was achieved in the 70, excepted on two short lines.
They can be seen on the Saint Lazare network on the Versailles-RD and Marly le Roi lines. They also second the RER A on the Cergy branch at peak hours. Before the opening of the RER B they were used between Gare du Nord and the then newly opened CDG airport on the "Roissyrail" service. They have been recently refurbished.
Btw, when the first number is a "5" (like Z5300) that's a rolling stock designed for the 1,5V network and "6" (like Z6400) is for 25kV.

Is there a plan to preserve Z5300 in train museums?. They are real classics

It's may be too early to answer, as they will serve on line N untill at least 2012.
But at least one Z5100, which Z5300 replaced on line N, has been preserved.
It was an unforgettable experience to take a ride on a Z5100 between Paris and Le Mans, specially if you sat above the engine..
Picture by bernard from the forum http://www.photos-de-trains.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7288
http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/3892/z5145vertdemaisons06077sw1.jpg

These is a Z6400. Those trains are almost as old as the Z5300 but much more reliables. They were ordered to replace the last trains operating with 750V third rail on the Saint Lazare network, when the conversion from the 750V third rail to the 25kV overhead was achieved in the 70, excepted on two short lines.

The Z6400 is the best rolling stock of Paris suburban system.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/DSC00082.jpg

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7131/dsc01726pg7.jpg

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/2640/dsc01734zi3.jpg

It's may be too early to answer, as they will serve on line N untill at least 2012.
But at least one Z5100, which Z5300 replaced on line N, has been preserved.
It was an unforgettable experience to take a ride on a Z5100 between Paris and Le Mans, specially if you sat above the engine..
Picture by bernard from the forum http://www.photos-de-trains.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7288
http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/3892/z5145vertdemaisons06077sw1.jpg
WoW! That train is really old

WoW! That train is really old
It was allready old in 1979. They are still in operation: that's a shame.

It was allready old in 1979. They are still in operation: that's a shame.

It looks like TCDD E8000s which were bulit by Alsthom in 1955

I liked the SNCF sign in fron of the train

It was allready old in 1979. They are still in operation: that's a shame.
No, they have been withdrawn. But the newer version, the Z5300, is still in operation on lines N and D.

^^ Yeh I never see one of them unlike the Z5300.
As I know the Z5100 used to run in the former ligne des Coteaux (now LRT http://www.metro-pole.net/x/T_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/T2_17.gif)

Last day of the ligne des Coteaux in 1993
http://galerie.vuesurlavoie.com/galleries/auteurs/y_seligour/Z5100_3ieme_rail_018.jpg

http://galerie.vuesurlavoie.com/galleries/auteurs/y_seligour/Z5100_3ieme_rail_032.jpg

We also see that Z5100 trains had third rail version for this line.

If I'm not wrong, the last line the Z5100 served in Paris area was TER Paris-Chartres-Le Mans.
I think their farewell trip was on one of the shuttles inside the cities of Orléans (les Aubrais) and Tours (Saint Pierre des corps).
I also remember them serving the shuttle for SNCF staff only between Trappes and Trappes-Triage.

As I see in Wikipedia the last were used in 1996 as "les navettes Orléans-Les Aubrais" a line between the two main stations of Orleans.
Now this line is served by the Z5300.
Anyway it is not really the subject of this thread, Orleans is close to Paris but not enouth close to be inside Paris metropolitan area.

Are there any elevated or underground stations in Paris?

Are there any Transilien trains working in RER lines?

Are there any elevated or underground stations in Paris?

Are you kidding? There are plenty

Are there any Transilien trains working in RER lines?

The rolling stock used in the RER C and D run also in other suburban network.
Infact SNCF RER are Transilien but we commonly use this term only for the suburban train outside RER.

Are you kidding? There are plenty

I am talking about heavy-rail not metro

they are underground in the city too. Also La Defence Station is underground too.

There is no underground or elevated suburban station inside inner Paris (excluding RER)
Anyway outside the inner city there is many elevated stations.

It was allready old in 1979. They are still in operation: that's a shame.
Indeed...

There is no underground or elevated suburban station inside inner Paris (excluding RER)
Anyway outside the inner city there is many elevated stations.

Gare Montparnasse is underground beneath an office building complex

I am talking about heavy-rail not metro
Me too... but I was referring to RER
There is no underground or elevated suburban station inside inner Paris (excluding RER)
Anyway outside the inner city there is many elevated stations.[...]

Gare Montparnasse is underground beneath an office building complexTheoretically it is not underground as they built the buildings and more recently a 'square' elevated over the rail tracks and platforms that are at grade

Even in Milan Graibaldi station is partly 'covered' by two skyscrapers they built over the tracks from 12 to 20

Gare Montparnasse is underground beneath an office building complex
No, the station is not underground and the plateforms are much higher than the street level, on the second floor. You may had the feeling to be underground because a public garden has been built above the tracks in the mid 80'.

NAT or Francillien

http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/2009-04-07_9849_p600.jpg

http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/IMG/jpg/2009-04-07_9854_p600.jpg

Metropole (http://www.metro-pole.net/actu/article1089.html)

These trains will greatly modernize the rolling stock of our suburban network. :)

There they are then , I even didn't recognize them in their grey colour

^^ It is a train without the livery.

Theoretically it is not underground as they built the buildings and more recently a 'square' elevated over the rail tracks and platforms that are at grade

Even in Milan Graibaldi station is partly 'covered' by two skyscrapers they built over the tracks from 12 to 20

Construction *above* existing train tracks? That's interesting, could you give any links/info about that project perhaps?

^^
It's not as complicated as it appears. You have to build the structure on 'pilotis' between the rail tracks

Anyway, this is Montparnasse railstation: buildings and a garden/square built on the whole area of the platforms

http://i43.tinypic.com/2q3u615.jpg


And here Milano Garibaldi station
The two towers (now under recladding) lay on part of the platform area, but there is a project (just the will, currently) to make like at Montparnasse and 'cover' everything

http://i44.tinypic.com/15cy9w9.jpg

http://i43.tinypic.com/28hhhyw.jpg

The project was of '80s

http://eprints.unifi.it/archive/00000189/00/img/4/big/42-Milano-torri-realizzate-.jpg

Here a aerview of end of '80s when just one tower was u/c: you can see the tracks now 'covered'

http://eprints.unifi.it/archive/00000189/00/img/4/big/40-Milano-foto-aerea-della-.jpg

http://www.milanofoto.it/pictures/Stradario/F/Freud%20Sigmund%2C%20Piazza/1/Stazione%20Porta%20Garibaldi/20080320_181_11%20Torri%20FS%20Porta%20Garibaldi.jpg http://www.milanofoto.it/pictures/Stradario/F/Freud%20Sigmund%2C%20Piazza/1/Torri%20FS/20080208_153411%20Torri%20Garibaldi%20durante%20i%20primi%20scavi%20in%20piazza%20Freud.jpg
www.milanofoto.it

Here one of the platforms under the towers

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3108/3163336543_ae178ecd55_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2282/1989392734_e68841b4a0_b.jpg

In this map you can see how the two towers are laying on the platforms: you can also see that tracks from 13 to 20 are crossing tracks and go underground into a tunnel which connects 'em to Monza direction
You can also see an S-line tunnel and various metro tunnels

http://i39.tinypic.com/11jvj42.jpg
www.msrmilano.com

One of the towers seen from the passengers terminal

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/71/199518961_ca09cbba53_o.jpg

Awesome!
I realize that it's not a particularly complicated way of building, it's just that I've never heard of anyone doing it like this.
Thanks a lot for the elaborate info, I really appreciate it.

Ermont Eaubonne http://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/RER-c_17.gif http://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2-H_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2-J_17.gif

http://img76.imageshack.us/img76/6585/ermontyd8.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Ermont-Eaubonne_station_2009.svg/500px-Ermont-Eaubonne_station_2009.svg.png

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12057.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12058.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12061.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12062.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12063.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12067.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12066.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12068.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12069.jpg

Brand new? I like it

I'm wondering why they didn't connect even the two tracks to St.Lazare leavin' 'em dead-end

^^ The tracks used to be connected before 2006 when they totally renovated the station and the tracks layout. A long time ago it was possible to ride from St-Lazare to Gare du Nord via Ermont-Eaubonne on this spur. Due to exploitation necessities Ermont-Eaubonne eventually became the terminus for the trains coming from St-Lazare.

This is our new suburban rolling stock.
The Z50000 also called NAT or Francilien.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3492/4074294833_57984919f6_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2530/4074284261_41afaee3ee_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3496/4075038558_923982f2e6_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3009/4075039468_549be0c7de_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3482/4074286227_bb098e5c25_b.jpg
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44250743@N02/sets/72157622600439813/

By 2016 most of our rolling stock should be under twenty years old while today many of our trains are about 40 years old.

^^Beautiful trains!:cheers:

those new trains are really colourful, i like it.

Argenteuil http://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2_17.gifhttp://www.metro-pole.net/x/Idf2-J_17.gif

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/Argenteuil-1.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12777.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12780.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12782.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12789.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12791.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12794.jpg

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/DSC12796.jpg


Brand new? I like it

I'm wondering why they didn't connect even the two tracks to St.Lazare leavin' 'em dead-end

^^ The tracks used to be connected before 2006 when they totally renovated the station and the tracks layout. A long time ago it was possible to ride from St-Lazare to Gare du Nord via Ermont-Eaubonne on this spur. Due to exploitation necessities Ermont-Eaubonne eventually became the terminus for the trains coming from St-Lazare.

It is not exactly the case, these tracks to Saint Lazare where in fact the Argenteuil branch of the RER C.
It was not possible to do Ermont Eaubonnes - Saint Lazare without a change in Argenteuil.
They closed this branch and remplaced it by a new line Saint Lazare-Argenteuil-Ermont Eabonnes.
They did some heavy work, adding new tracks, building new bridge over the Seine river.

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d107/Vincentthomas/Album%202/Argenteuilbranch.jpg

The map that I posted in the first pot of this thread show well how was the situation before the end of 2006.
Ermont Eaubonnes and Argenteuil are in the northwest.


http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/2654/mapidfvr4.gif

HI,Actually in Belgrade there is similar system like Paris RER ,wich was not exploied at all city wants to buy 20 new trains an restart it in 2010 it,s completly independent with 30 km double tunnels,bridge,and connect three part of the city with five lines,three underground stations,largest 40 m.deep

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3163/2751617414_9896f7de25_b.jpghttp://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:7oXka5FWrCU2nM:http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/4263/beovoz2gy1mq6.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Vukov_spomenik_Beovoz_envi.png/800px-Vukov_spomenik_Beovoz_envi.png

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Vukov_spomenik_Beovoz_envi.png/800px-Vukov_spomenik_Beovoz_envi.png

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3163/2751617414_9896f7de25_b.jpg

http://i34.tinypic.com/20awfwp.jpg

http://www.srbija-info.yu/Razvoj/img/projekat.jpghttp://www.srbija-info.yu/Razvoj/img/prokop.jpghttp://www.srbija-info.yu/Razvoj/img/prokop1.jpg
This new station in Belgrade is still unfinished, hope the best in 2010 it,s also build for high speed train

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cc/New_Railway_Bridge_1.jpg/300px-New_Railway_Bridge_1.jpg http://www.blic.rs/_customfiles/Image/slike/2009/02_februar/11/beograd/prokop-v.jpghttp://www.blic.rs/_customfiles/Image/slike/2009/02_februar/11/beograd/prokop-x.jpg

Thought this might warrant a thread as all their own French discussions are in their own language. What experiences have you had with the rail system outside of TGVs in France?

I've personally travelled on the line from Paris to Limoges (trains run to/from Brive) and didn't find it amazing. It was something called a Corail Teoz which did 160km/h so it was better than comparable Australian services, but that's not saying a lot. The timetable was very confusing to understand with all the local TERs thrown it and confusion about which trains run on what days of the week.

The Austerlitz terminus in Paris was pretty ordinary too I thought. Didn't have the beggars of Gare du Nord but not a very impressive station.

Does anybody know if there are any plans to upgrade that line at all?

I have taken normal SNCF intercity trains before (Paris-Perpignan I think). And honestly, I was disappointed. The last time I travelled that way was in 2006. It was refurbished, and done quite well, but the trains themselves where very backward. I think travelling on the WCML on a 390 or on the ECML on a 225 is much better.

I still don't understand why they don't use ETR600s (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ETR_600)or more modern trains on these curvy lines. They could achieve 200kmh on most segments.
Back in the late 90's, SNCF expected to run Pendolinos on their "slow" lines to keep them competitive against high speed lines. What happened ?

The conventional railways in France are definitely not so great - with the possible exception of a few "priority lines" like Paris-Orleans-Limoges, etc. IMHO this reflects the fact that they have been starved of investment because of the development of the TGV network. If you look at comparable figures for railway investment relative to the population or GDP across Europe in the last 20-30 years then you get the following picture: two laggards have invested signficantly less than other countries, namely UK and my native Denmark. France is doing.... OK, but is definitely not above the middle group. - And this in the thick of a period where it spent more on HS trains than almost any other country.

Conclusion: the money spent on TGV lines were not "extra" budgetary allocations - they were whisked away from other forms of railway investment. We feel the consequences on many of the legacy lines. To some extent this is a deliberate policy. France is much more willing than most European nations to let parts of the country where the economic basis is crumbling depopulate, and governments make the point inter alia by turning of the tap of public funding for infrastructure. (In this respect I think France ressembles the US more than, say, Germany...) But we also feel it in the Parisian region that normally enjoys an automatically high priority in French policy. The suburban RER system that was developed to great acclaim in the 30 years following WW2 is beginning to crack badly. The reason is, again, that having put in place a good system that was fully operational around the early 1980s the authorities rested on their laurels and failed to undertake meaningful maintenance and follow-up investments.

^^ Everytime I read one of your posts, I'm amazed at how good your English is.

And I've heard a similar opinion about France's non-TGV rail network before. Sympathy should be given to nations which don't have HSR systems and yet still don't invest in their existing rail networks.

I've personally travelled on the line from Paris to Limoges (trains run to/from Brive) and didn't find it amazing. It was something called a Corail Teoz which did 160km/h so it was better than comparable Australian services, but that's not saying a lot. The timetable was very confusing to understand with all the local TERs thrown it and confusion about which trains run on what days of the week.

The French have taken the design of confusing railway timetables to a high level. Basically the SNCF considers itself an operator of trains, not an operator of a railway network, like SBB or DB does. And the SNCF runs to a different timetable every day of the year.

If you use the SNCF railway website to plan a trip between two stations on the network it will often claim that the trip you want to do is not possible. This because it won't consider any routes that involve more than two changes.
The TGV's are fast, but they're operated as a ground level airline, not as part of the rest of the system, with the consequence that a lot of the gains you make on the TGV are lost when making transfers. I prefer the Swiss approach, with an efficient network with frequent, well coördinated trains.