PARIS | RER & Suburban Rail

[Minato ku]

Of course the RER C is quite confortable and less crowded than the RER B, but the frequency outside the central section is very low.
It is like seing that you prefer the line 10 at the line 1 of Paris Metro.
But in reality wich is better the line 1 or the line 10 ?

The SNCF section of the RER B is not great, always a problem with the SNCF RER.
the RATP section is very good, but it is affected by the problem of the SNCF section.

[m@rco]

Originally Posted by Minato ku

The SNCF section of the RER B is not great, always a problem with the SNCF RER.
the RATP section is very good, but it is affected by the problem of the SNCF section.

It's a little bit a manichean vision !?

[Minato ku]

Not really it is the case in the RER B. (A big difference beteween the north and the southern part)

The RER C working well but it has too many branchs, train not adapted (Only two doors per cars ) and low platform.
I see that the RATP do a very well jobs in high capacity urbain trains and the SNCF do not.
Why ?

I have proof, The 5 busiest line in Paris region are all RATP or partially : RER A (busiest section RATP), RER B (busiest section RATP), line 1, line 4, line 13 The RER D and C wich are over the hundred kilometers are after these.
Why ?
Because their trains are not adapted, the frequecies (outside central section) are too low.

Imagine the RER A or B with these train, only two doors per cars and not adapted at crowd.


Of course the metro and RER A or B rolling stocks lack of longitudinal seat wich affecting the train capacity but it is a way better than the rolling stocks of the RER C and D.

I must admit that it is better with the RER E.

[Minato ku]

Picture of the strike by Metropole

Gare de Lyon Like the average rush hour but with a lower frequency (30 minutes instead of 90 second)




Magenta I should said that I have never see crowd in this line, it have capacity of 80,000 travellers per hour for each direction but have only 200,000 passengers per day.


Anyway the strike is over.

[Minato ku]

The worst RER line, with low frequency, delays and a murder the last week.

The RER D is one of the five lines in the RER Rapid transit system serving Paris.

The line officially runs from Orry-la-Ville - Coye (D1) to Melun (D2) and Malesherbes (D4). In reality, some trains continue to Creil except during rush hours, and the link between Juvisy-sur-Orge and Melun via Corbeil-Essonnes is operated by RER D

First inauguration : September 27, 1987
Length : 160.0 km (99.4 miles)
Number of stops : 59 (including Corbeil-Essonnes Melun branch, Chantilly and Creil)
Line D links the Gare du Nord with the Gare de Lyon via Châtelet - Les-Halles. The section north of the Gare du Nord opened in the late 1980s; a dedicated tunnel opened in 1995 to connect it to the SNCF network south of the Gare de Lyon, part of which was transferred to the RER.

500,000 passengers use this line everday.



Rolling stock
Z20500 at Malesherbes (southern terminal station)


Evry-Courcouronnes

[Minato ku]

It is 30th years of the RER network.

For this anniversary some picture of the successful RER A.







Maybe too successful for users in rush hour.

[Minato ku]

The RER E is one of the five lines in the RER Rapid transit system serving Paris, France.

The line runs from Haussmann St-Lazare (E1) to Chelles Gournay (E2) and Tournan (E4)

First inauguration : 1999
Length : 52.3 km (32.5 miles)
Number of stops : 21

Line E runs from Haussmann - St-Lazare via Magenta (serving Gare de l'Est and Gare du Nord) to the north-eastern suburbs. It was originally referred to as the EOLE, or Est Ouest Ligne Express.

200,000 passengers per day.



MI2N EOLE

[m@rco]

Originally Posted by Minato ku

... Magenta (serving Gare de l'Est and Gare du Nord)

Not yet

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magenta_%28Paris_RER%29
http://www.mairie10.paris.fr/mairie1...sp?page_id=160

[ChaseCarver]

Will there be a 'tunnel' between Magenta and Chateau-Landon ???

[Minato ku]

Yes, the tunnel between Magneta and Chateau-Landon should be opened in 2012.

A little ride in RER E central station

Magenta Gare du Nord














RER E In direction of Haussman Saint Lazare.

[Minato ku]

Haussmann Saint Lazare

[iampuking]

I love the giant RER stations, I hope when Crossrail is built, they are to a similar standard, but it seems unlikely...

Was Auber on RER A originally like the RER E stations with a high curved ceiling, but they decided to cover it up to place back-lit advertisements there instead?

[coth]

Originally Posted by Metropolitan

Actually, this would deserve to be double checked.

We have only old and partial data for the RER A. The 273 million annual trafic figure in 2004 excludes the SNCF sections of the line (branches to Cergy and Poissy). Furthermore, traffic has massively increased on the RER in the recent years (mainly due to Deloanöe's policy to limit automobile traffic). Finally, datas for the Moscow metro are about daily ridership whereas those of RER are about annual ridership, and the conversion between both figures isn't that easy.

Well, all this to say that Moscow's purple line may be busier than the RER A, but this is really not sure.

still, stats for moscow. daily ridership on 27 december 2006.

http://www.mosmetro.ru/files/4904528...d/2006en-1.pdf
http://www.mosmetro.ru/files/1688536...f/2006en-2.pdf

[Minato ku]

Originally Posted by iampuking

I love the giant RER stations, I hope when Crossrail is built, they are to a similar standard, but it seems unlikely...

Was Auber on RER A originally like the RER E stations with a high curved ceiling, but they decided to cover it up to place back-lit advertisements there instead?

This is that's we call cathedral station. These are great but truly expensive
For the RER A the cost of Charles de Gaulle Etoile, Auber and Nation station was about €3 billion.
These three station was more expensive than the whole Victoria line built at the same time.




I have a book with plan of huge RER stations I will post them later.

[Minato ku]

Auber



Click to enlarge

[Minato ku]

Chatelet les Halles station by metropolitan

Originally Posted by Metropolitan

Here is a map of Châtelet les Halles as it was in the early 80's :


Click to enlarge

This map is taken from an 80's version of the Larousse encyclopedia. As you can see, RER D and Metro line 14 weren't built yet. Furthermore, Gare du Nord remains RER B terminus since the line hasn't yet been extended northbound.

Actually, RER D tunnels are still called in this map "SNCF" with white tunnels. It was then only a project, but the station in itself was already built to host it. On the other side, the Paris metro line 14 wasn't even planned yet. The station is currently built right below the metro line 1 station, and its tunnel gets below line 11 and then is built between line 7 and RER A tunnels at the bottom left of the picture.

There's also a motor vehicles tunnel which isn't visible on the main map but which is shown on the upper left scheme right beside Les Halles line 4 station. That tunnel is great as there's a lot of turns and entries and exits making of it a real maze where it is easy to get lost.

Anyway, when I'm there, I have the feeling that Paris is a living body and that this Châtelet-les Halles station is its heart. The metro and RER tunnels are its arteries, trains are its blood, and Parisians are its red blood cells. While waiting the subway coming, if I focus, I can even hear the heart beating... though in most of case these are generally musicians playing in the metro that I hear from far away.

[iampuking]

Originally Posted by Minato ku

These three station was more expensive than the whole Victoria line built at the same time.

I bet it paid off though, the Victoria line has overcrowding at Victoria station in the peaks, its so bad that they have to shut the platforms regularly because they were built too narrow. RER probably has no kind of problems because the planners thought ahead...

Great diagrams by the way! Do you know why RER lines were constructed with both tracks in one large tunnel and side platforms instead of two single bore tunnels with an island platform?

Also, regarding that diagram of Chatelet, were the RER A platforms built before the RER B and cross-platform interchange built later?

[Minato ku]

It is french style, in France we prefer the side platforms instead of the island platform.
That's why there is few island plaforms in France.

In the central Paris RER only Saint Michel Notre Dame station have two single bore tunnels with an island platform. It was opened in 1988 and it is the only tube style station in Paris.

Actually the RER A and B opened at the same time in Chatelet les Halles. (1977)
Even if most stations was opened before 1977, it is only with the opening of Chatelet les Halles that the name RER was created.
Before the RER A was the Saint Germain (western bound) and Vincenne (easter bound) and the RER B (southern bound) was called Sceaux line.

EDIT : I have forgotten one station with two single bore tunnels with an island platform : Gare de Lyon.
It is also the the case of Chatelet les Halles for the RER A and B.

[iampuking]

Thanks for your information, do you know if the RER is deep level or shallow.

Sorry, but I don't really understand your final paragraph..

[ddes]

The RER is simply amazing, really unlike I've ever seen or heard about (except the Crossrail, which is a far long way off)...

Is it adviceable if a tourist like me uses the RER rather than the Metro?