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Trams in Rouen

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For the modern tramway, see Rouen tramway.
Map of old Rouen tramway

The Old Rouen Tramway was built after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 – 1871 and started service in 1877. In this age of industrial and demographic growth, the horse-drawn transports of carriages and omnibuses that had started at the end of the 18th century and progressively improved, were no longer enough to provide urban services.

Local officials therefore adopted this new mode of communication, invented in the United States in 1832. Initially horse-drawn and steam-driven, the tramway was electrified in 1896. The network quickly spread throughout various city-centre districts on the right bank of the Seine, reaching the municipalities of the northern plateau, the heights of Bonsecours in the east, skirting the tetile valley of the River Cailly in the west, crossing the river and serving, to the south, the suburbs and industrial districts of the left bank. The tramway had altogether 70 kilometres (43 mi) of track miles, the longest network in France during the Belle Époque, contributing to the success of events which went down in the town's history: the Colonial Exhibition of 1896, the Norman Millenium Festival of 1911.

But althouhg the 1920s saw a slight growth in traffic, there was no more expansion of the network. Motoring had arrived to put an end to its monopoly. The rising power of buses and trolleybuses, the Great Depression in France, and above all the Second World War which had ravaged Rouen and Normandy, condemned the tramway to death. The last trams stopped running in 1953, after seventy-six years of service. But in 1994, a new Rouen tramway came to the capital of Normandy.

The first tramways

Horse or steam?

A horse-drawn tram on the Rue Jeanne-d'Arc

Rouen was integrated into the Royal demesne of France after the conequest of Normandy by Philip II of France, and remained one of the largest cities of the kingdom under the Ancien Régime. It prospered during the 19th century, with the traditional trades of textiles and Rouen manufactory (faïence) alongside the newer chemical and papermaking industries. The navigable Seine, emptying at Rouen, had been Parisiens' route to the sea ever since the Middle Ages. Napoleon Bonaparte said "[Rouen, Le Havre forment une même ville dont la Seine est la grand-rue] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)" ("Rouen and Le Havre form a single town of which the Seine is the High Street"). Rouen and Orléans were the first large cities to be connected by railway to Paris, on 3 May 1843.[1]. The economic of the First Industrial Revolution under the Second Empire, and the ever-growing popluation, obliged the Rouen city authorities, after the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 – 1871, to rethink the travel facilities both within the city centre and between it and the expanding suburbs.[1]

Urban services — always horse-drawn, either carriages or omnibusus on the most profitable routes — were not enough to satisfy the needs of a town that already numbered, with its suburbs, more than 170,000 people. From 1873 to 1875 the city fathers commissioned a study into getting together railways to connect the most populous areas of Rouen.[1] A decree was signed on 5 May 1876,[2] committing to a publicly-owned standard gauge network, and to horse-drawn carriages. Nine lines stretching 27,500 m (1,370 chains)* were decreed:[3]

Line From To Via Length
1 Pont de Pierre[Note 1] Maromme (Half-Circle), Le Havre sea wall and Route nationale 14 6,600 m (330 chains)
2 Hôtel de ville Darnétal Place Saint-Hilaire 3,500 m (170 chains)
3 Hôtel de ville Sotteville-lès-Rouen (Quatre-Mares) Pont de Pierre and Soteville town hall 4,800 m (240 chains)
4 Pont de Pierre Le Petit-Quevilly (Roundabout) Church of Saint-Sever 3,300 m (160 chains)
5 Hôtel de ville Jardin des Plantes Pont de Pierre and Church of Saint-Sever 2,900 m (140 chains)
6 Pont de Pierre Gare Rue Verte Quays, Rue Jeanne-d’Arc and Rue Ernest-Leroy[4] 1,700 m (85 chains)
7 Pont de Pierre Place Saint-Hilaire Boulevards of Nitrière and Martainville 1,500 m (75 chains)
8 Hôtel de Ville Quai du Mont-Riboudet Rue de l’Hôtel-de-Ville[Note 2], Cauchoise Square and boulevard[Note 3] 1,600 m (80 chains)
9 Quai du Mont-Riboudet Gare Rue Verte Boulevard Cauchoise, Rue de Crosne, Vieux-Marché, Rue Rollon, Rue Jeanne-d’Arc and Rue Ernest-Leroy 1,600 m (80 chains)

The town was authorised to pass construction and operation to one or more contractors. It quickly chose the only serious candidate, Gustav Palmer Harding, a British citizen. He was the continental representative of Merryweather & Sons, builders of steam tram engines.[5] This decision confirmed the close railway links, maintained for nearly half a century, between the city and Great Britain. Naturally, Mr Harding wanted to promote the machines his company made, so he long made his views known to the municipal authorities. Finally convinced, they authorised him to use steam power from Maromme (Line 1), entering service on 29 December 1877.[6] Merryweather & Sons, whose depot was on the Avenue du Mont-Riboudet, made sure to have pulling trains. Small and light — 4.7 tonnes (4.6 long tons; 5.2 short tons) — these reversible locomotives had two coupled axles, completely covered with a wooden body. They looked the same as a normal carriage so as not to frighten the horses. These steam carriages were driven with their lower compartment closed; the upper compartment was roofed but had open sides.[7]

The first steam trams of Léon Francq's design appeared quickly on the Maromme line and were run together with some of the horse-drawn tramways that served the town centre[8]

Success of, and doubts about, the first modes of traction

Steam tram near the theatre in the early 1880s

The successful first line was soon extended to the Place Saint-Hilaire, and opened on 1 June 1878. Harding then founded the [Compagnie des Tramways de Rouen] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) ("Rouen Tramways Company") (CTR)[9] and started building new sections from the Town Hall to Mont-Riboudet (Line 8; opened 3 September 1878) and started steam traction from Darnétal (Line 2; started 23 June 1879). On the other hand, Line 4 (opened 3 October 1878), Line 5, (12 december 1878), Line 6 (opened 6 February 1879), and Line 3 (opened 27 September 1879), which all went through narrow local streets, remained horse-drawn when first opened. Line 9 was not constructed because of technical difficulties.[10]

For more than six years, twenty-three locomotives coexisted with horse-drawn trams on the Rouen network.[6] But if the speed and regularity of steam trams pleased passengers (the speed limit was16 kilometres per hour (9.9 mph) between Mont-Riboudet et Maromme), they were also expensive,[6] coal consumption being high because of the frequent stops that let the boilers cool down.[11] Moreover, steam power angered both residents — who accused them of being dirty and rough-riding — and coachmen — whose animals were scared by the driver's horn and the "infernal" noise of the trains.[6] Operation thus was totally horse-drawn from 1884.[11] The CTR thus found itself in charge of a "cavalry" of around 350 horses, stabled at Trianon and Maromme, the depot at Mont-Riboudet having been disposed of.[12]</ref>

Rouen tram on the Rue Grand-Pont

Electrification

In 1895 the mediocrity of horse-drawn service and the prospect of the great Colonial Exposition (due to open in Rouen on 1 April 1896) made the the town officials think of extension and electrification of the network.[11] Councillors were sent on study trips both in France and abroad, one even spent a year in the United States. [13]. At last, after much debate, the town accepted the CTR's proposals. Electrification was ccontracted to the company of L’électrification fut alors confiée à la société Thomson Houston, who built the "First Network", ten lines of standard gauge, either new or relaid existing tracks:[14]

Line From To
1 Pont Corneille Maromme
2 Avenue du Mont-Riboudet Darnétal
3 Hôtel de ville Sotteville railway station
4 Place Beauvoisine Jardin des Plantes
5 Place Beauvoisine Place des Chartreux
6 Hôtel de ville Petit-Quevilly roundabout
7 Pont Corneille Gare Rue Verte
8 Hôtel de ville Rue de Lyons
9 Circular via the boulevards and quays of the right bank of the Seine
10 Sotteville railway station Quatre-Mares

The longest electric tramway in France

Public enthusiasm and the second network's construction

The "new" tramway at Sotteville, Place Voltaire

Infrastructure works and construction of the power station on the Rue Lemire were swiftly completed. The first electric locomotive entered servive on 2 January 1896, the electrified network going live fifteen days ahead of schedule; the last horse-drawn tram saw service on 19 July on the Sotteville line.[15] After teething troubles, the new mode of transport had considerable success; in 1896 it transported over fifteen million passengers.[16] The tram sheds, holding 50 vehicles, were expanded to accommodate 25 new units during the first year of service. These were classic tramcars with two axles, powered by two 25 hp (19 kW) motors (one for each axle), and had room for 40 passengers.[17] With its popular success, the network could be completed: the Line 10 extension to Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray was opened on 16 April 1899, an 11th line was constructed from Maromme to Notre-Dame-de-Bondeville (opened 17 December 1899), and a 12th from the Church of Saint-Sever to the Saint-Maur sea wall (6 February 1908).[16] The Rouen tramways had 37 km (23 mi) of lines, the largest electric network in France.[15][16] Up to three trams ran at 20 km/h (12 mph) at 20-minute intervals.[16]

Inspired by the dynamism of public transport in Rouen, Baron Empain, through the intermediary of Cauderay, one of his colleagues, proposed the creation of a second complementary network.[18]</ref> Meeting numerous difficulties to which the CTR was no stranger, the new company called [Traction Électrique E. Cauderay] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help), a sister company of the well-known [Companie Générale de Traction] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (CGT), was given, by a decree of 17 July 1899, the concession over five routes:[19]

Line From To Via
1 Gare d’Orléans Amfreville-la-Mi-Voie
2 Quai de la Bourse Bapeaume
3 Quai de Paris Église du Petit-Quevilly Pont Boieldieu
4 Quai de la Bourse Bihorel
5 Place du Boulingrin Cimetière nord Monumental

The first services started on Line 1 on 18 January 1900, the other services starting on 10 May that year, but, facing competition from the CTR, the tramway from Petit-Quevilly was curtailed, its terminus becoming Rue Léon-Malétra.

Towards monopoly

Tram decorated for the Norman Millenium fêtes in 1911

The second network was far less efficient than the first; over 16 km (9.9 mi) of routes, the trams transported only 1.46 million passengers in 1901, so 91,000 per route kilometre (56,500 per route mile). (In 1908, over 20 million people used public transport in Rouen, 19 million with CTR, 1.6 million with CGT.)[20] In 1908 the CGT divested the second network to the [Compagnie centrale de chemins de fer et de tramways] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) because of adminstrative problems, a serious accident at Monumental on 6 November 1908[21] and a considerable deficit. This became an opportunity for the rival CRT, who were finally rid of competition when in 1910 the CGT surrendered its running rights.[16]

Now master of all of the public transport in Rouen and its suburbs (the company having also absorbed the tramway and funicular railway of Bonsecours on 25 September 1909[22]), the CTR reorganised its lines towards a more integrated service. It also grew the network with later-running services, in extending Line 12 to Champ de Courses on 1 January 1910, reaching the district of Bois-Guillaume on 4 June 1911 and that of Mont-Saint-Aignan on 15 March 1913; This last section, granted to run over the local authority's tracks, connected Grand-Quevilly (Rue de l’Église) and, on a branch, the district of Petit-Quevilly, on 1 August 1915.[23] The network had grown to its largest size, with 70 km (43 mi) of routes (including the tramway of Bonsecours).[24]

World War I

Motorwoman and female conductor during World War I (1916)

World War I did not affect tram service in Rouen as it did elsewhere. After a short period of disruption during the great August 1914 mobilisation, the CTR dutifully maintained normal service during the four years of war. It overcame its reduced staffing levels with overtime, abolition of leave, and redeployment of depot personnel; nearly all conductors were promoted to motormen, to their great satisfaction. At the end of 1916, women (aged 24 or over in 1916, reduced to 23 or over in 1918) joined men on the trams, but, sexism at that time being the norm, the "wattwomen" (female motormen) were only allowed on the "easy" lines of Mont-Saint-Aignan, Bois-Guillaume and Monumental, and were not allowed on steep gradients.[25]

To satisfy military requirements, the network extended the Champ de Courses track to the Château du Madrillet, seat of an important BEF base. It also established a connection with the Gare Saint-Sever to transport the injured arriving by train to the main hospitals of Rouen. These installations, constructed in record time, disappeared when the war ended.[26]

Operational difficulties and the tramway's closure

Tram near Gare de Rouen-Rive-Droite ("Gare Rue Verte")

Recovery and competition

Denied maintenance until after World War I, track and infrastructure was in a piteous state, voies et matériels se retrouvèrent en piteux état à la fin des hostilités, while expenses escalated dramatically. The problem became a crisis after the serious fire at the Trianon depot on 30 November 1921, which destroyed 70 of the 155 trams of the CTR[23]. Successive fare rises provided a stopgap, but with the new convention of 29 December 1923[27] the company announced a reorganisation of the network and the arrival of a tough cometitor: the bus. Trams had always attacted criticism over the limited capacity, Le transport par fer était alors l’objet de vives critiques, on lui reprochait l’insuffisance du nombre de places offertes, slowness and discomfort of the vehicles, and their encumbrance to automobiles in the city centre. Another accident on the Monumental line on 5 October 1925 hastened the inevitable: the trams lost their first route.[28]

Fightback through innovation

Left bank of the Seine, between the Gare de Saint-Sever and the Gare d'Orléans

Still, the CTR had record passenger numbers in 1928, with over 30 million journeys.[29]. But from 1929, the buses took to the narrow streets in the city centre, as well as routes with low tram traffic such as Chartreux, Maromme and the circular.[29]. The tramways continued with no intent to surrender, and started large programmes of renovation and modernisation in the dozen or so years before World War II. Between 1928 and 1932, 75 first-generation trams were rebuilt to allow one man operation.[23]

The fast-moving Rouen workshops devised two prototypes, of classical design, but with double folding doors at the front and safety devices (compressed air on one of the prototypes, electrical on the over) which became the basis for a series of 25 vehicles named "Nogentaises".[Note 4] 25 new trailing cars completed the new rolling stock. In 1931, a "revolutionary" pedal-controlled locomotive was built equipped with disc brakes, but no more came of it through lack of funds.[30]

The 1930s also saw the arrival of the trolleybus, having the twin advantages of electrical traction and pneumatic tyres; these newcomers supplanted the old trams on the Mont-Saint-Aignan line from Sotteville and Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray. In 1938, the tram sheds were enlarged for the arrival of the "Parisiennes", ten reversible trams bought from Paris.[31]

World War II and the end of the tramway

Two trams at the Place de l’Hôtel de ville

World War II hit Rouen hard, including its transport network. In 1939, before it started, moblisation and requisition had reduced the frequency of service; the German advance, in 1940, blew up the bridges; on 9 June 1940 the Rouen Transborder Brige was destroyed,[32] which split the tram network in two until 1946. With the German occupation, the lines were progressively reopened put service was reduced. Difficultes became such during this sad period that the directors of the CTR[33] had to improvise outdoor workshops. The bombing campaign of Spring 1944 put an end to their use with their heavy raids, in particular the destruction of the central part of the Rue Lemire.[23]

The Nazi occupation ended on 30 August 1944 and Liberation slowly healed the towns wounds. The was had been a catastrophe for the network: of the 76 trams in circulation in 1939, 24 had been destroyed and 25 damaged; track and overhead lines had been mutilated; the Trianon depot had been bombed several times[34] Traffic could still be restored slowly, thanks to the hard work of the staff and above all the passengers' help in moving the trailing cars. In 1945, 38 locomotives and 14 trailing cars were operational, but, despite restoration of trams across the Seine on 20 April 1946, the war had condemned the first mode of mass transport in Normandy.[34] The infrastructure had been dealt a fatal blow, Rouen was full of out of date equipment; trams were progressively replaced by buses and trolleybuses.

In March 1950 the municipality decided definitely to close the tramway, but its actual closure came somewhat later. It was only on Saturday, 28 February 1953[23] that the last tram ran on the Champ de Courses line, 76 years after the network's first service. But the Rouennaise did not forget the tram's services rendered, organising a first-class funeral: Just before the last scheduled run, a parade of honour made up of three trams ran from the Hôtel de ville to the Trianon depot, cheered by the crowds.[35]

Bonsecours funicular railway and tramway

The Bonsecours funicular railway climbing Monte d’Eauplet towards its terminus

Early projects

Bonsecours is a commune on a plateau to the southwest of Rouen. Until 1890 only an infrequent bus service linked it to Rouen. However, it attracted many hikers, with its splendid panoramas over the meandering Seine, and pilgrims visiting the shrine to the Virgin Mary.

A first railway project for the mountain, later known by the name [tramways de granit] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help), was presented in 1876 by Cordier; it was one of the far-flung ideas that the railway companies often had in the 19th century. Because classical rail has poor adherence, Cordier designed a raceway made of two granite rails embedded in concrete with a continuous guide rail between them. The 2,200 m (110-chain) line, with a terminus at the Quai de la Bourse, would be served by steam carriages with a capacity of only 30 places, but capable of running on public streets as well as its special track. Because of its technical complexity the line would have been hugely expensive, the 1:1 gradient to Bonsecours requiring no fewer than 30 viaducts spanning overall 250 m (270 yd).[36] The project was soon abandoned.

Building of the funicular railway and tramway

In 1892 Bonsecours was finally connected to the "Earth below" when two Swiss engineers, Ludwig and Schopfer, built a funicular railway with water-filled counterweights. On 8 June 1892 it was formally declared open to the public of public and first ran eleven days later on 19 June.[37] This mountain railway, 400 m (20 chains) long and rising 132 m (433 ft), ran from the banks of the River Seine to the esplanade of the basilica. Each car could hold 90 people (50 seated), and its water tank could be filled in five minutes.[38] There were twelve journeys each way daily, more on busier days. But the ferry service from its terminus at Epaulet to Rouen was irregular, and by the end of the century it had a dangerous rival: the tramway.

Motor No 6 in the "Cavée" ("cutting"). The rails and sleepers can be easily seen, with another track at a lower level on the right of the picture.

At first, in 1899, the tramway was designed to be steam powered, but by 1895 this had changed to electromotive power. The line was built by the [Compagnie du Tramway de Bonsecours] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (CTB), and first ran on 21 May 1899.[39]. It was 5,600 m (280 chains) between the two termini (the Pont Corneille and the crossing of the RN 14 and the Belbeuf roads), with timetabling of up to 7 trams. The trams had greater power than their Rouen counterparts, with 38 hp (28 kW) motors. They could climb steep gradients (up to 9:10) and could accommodate 48 passengers, with 42 more in a trailing car.[40]

New ownership and closure

The Bon-Secours tramway on the coast. At the summit, the monument to Joan of Arc

Seventy-two daily journeys each way brought the tramway success, and it transported nearly 700,000 passengers in 1901, compared to 140,000 for the funicular, which was clearly in dire staits financially (210,000 passengers in 1898)[39]. The figures were so catastrophic that on 25 November 1905 the CTB sacked the management of the mountain railway, and liquidated the defunct [Chemin Funiculaire d’intérêt local de Rouen-Eauplet au plateau de Bonsecours] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (a rather long name for a rather short line). Operations continued, and the CTR took over both tracks on 25 December 1909.[39] Although the tramway was always well used (900,000 tickets sold in 1913), the clientele of the funicular sunk inexorably (30,000 tickets collected the same year), and some daily receipts were less than 1 franc.[39] Lacking passengers, the funicular closed on 25 May 1915,[13] and the tramway became the monopoly service for Bonsecours. This date should not be confused with that for the Rouen service, which continnued until 24 February 1953.[23]

Trianon tramway

Map of Trianon tramway

Better service on the left bank

At the start of the 20th century the suburbs of the left bank were the quickest growing areas of Rouen, in particular the communes of Sotteville (a large railway town) and Grand-Quevilly, but these towns did not have good enough public transport. Although the CTR had constructed some lines, they did not well serve residents wishing for rapid transit between the suburbs and the city centre. Line 4 of the CTR, with its central terminus at Place Beauvoisine, ran only as far as the Trianon roundabout at the edge of the Jardin des Plantes. Its soutern extension to the Bruyères roundabout, a meeting-point of several roads to the new districts, and to the racecourse where major horse racing events took place each Thursday, was planned but always left hanging.[41]

In 1903 a man from Sotteville, M. Hulin, the owner and proprietor of the Château des Bruyères, grew tired of these delays and asked for the concession for a narrow-gauge (60 cm (23.62 in)*) horse-drawn tramway, which would connect the Trianon roundabout to the racecourse via the Elbeuf road, being 2,000 m (99 chains) long.[41] Two years passed in discussing the project's profitability (profit for both Hulin and M. Dagan, the engineer from the Corps of Bridges and Roads, which seemed very optimistic) and for tendering the construction of the line to a contractor other than the CTR. This time of reflection led to abandoning horse-drawn trams in favour of mechanical traction,[42] and moving the terminus from the racecourse entrance to the vast cemetary that the authorites intended to build,[Note 5] close to a shooting range. The CTR did not oppose the line, which would not compete with their own, so it was made a Public Local Railway[Note 6] on 10 March 1905.[43]

Small train in town

Work then got under weigh and the line was put in service on 1 April 1906, well before the official opening date of 28 April.[44] This short 2,200 m (110-chain) route, opened solely for passenger traffic, traced a rectangle between the Trianon roundabout and the racecourse, the 60cm-gauge rails being established beside the Rue d’Elbeuf between the trees lining the road and the fences separating adjacent land (much of which was owned by Hulin)[42]. Service was provided by two 24 hp (18 kW) diesel-electric locomotives, built by the Turgan workshops, each with room for 16 people,[Note 7] and the fuel depot was sited near to the racecourse. The frequency of service was particularly high, thirty journeys each way per day, the entire line took 10 minutes to traverse at a maximum speed of 25 kilometres per hour (16 mph).[42]

The first months' service did not meet Hulin's expectations; passenger numbers were much lower than expected, the coefficient of use[Note 8] was catastrophic: 0.39[42]. Since the law instituting a weekly day of rest was been passed in 1906, it was decided, from 12 Janary 1907, to extend the line 800 m (40 chains) o the Madrillet roundabout at the opening of the Rouvray Forest, popular for Sunday walks. This 3,000 m (150-chain) double-track extension was inaugurated on 27 August 1907. The same year, diesel-electric locomotives (whose "terrible noise" frightened the horses, to the chagrin of their owners[45]) were replaced[Note 9] by electromotive traction. Two Orenstein & Koppel 0-2-0T[Note 10] steam locomotives,[46] whose chimeys were fitted with spark arresters to prevent forest fires around the Rouvray Forest, headed two open carriages each taking 16 passengers.[47]

Brief life

Turgan diesel=electric locomotive at the time of deployment[Note 11]
The Trianon tramway at its terminus on the Route d’Elbeuf, near the Jardin des Plantes; to the right, an urban electric tramcar returning to Rouen

The line was never profitable: the coefficient of use ffell to 0.32 in 1907 and passenger numbers reached 34,000 against 60,000 previously.[48] Except on Thursdays, horse racing day, and Sundays where the tramway took amorous walkers to the forest paths, the trams went with frew passengers, often with none. What is more, the high number of return journeys reduced the possibility of making connections in Rouen, so that passengers on the small line had to wait a long time at the Trianon roundabout.[48]. The situation was so preoccupying the [Compagnie du Tramway de Rouen-Trianon] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) that in January 1908 it replaced Hulin, always the driving force, asking the Conseil Général to authorise a reduction in service frequency, but it also proposed to use four-car trams instead of two-car trams on busy days.[49] If this latter was accepted without resistance by the departmental authorities, the service reduction was allowed with much red tape, which can be seen from this extract of the Soulier, the Conseiller général of Rouen:[50]

[Il est bien entendu que, du moment qu’il ne s’agit que d’un minimum, la Société restera toujours libre de mettre en marche le nombre de trains nécessaires pour transporter les voyageurs qui se présenteront, qu’elle satisfera à cette condition, son propre intérêt est garant, et, tout en donnant satisfaction plus complète au public, son matériel sera employé judicieusement, au lieu de rouler à vide pendant une partie de la journée au détriment de son entretien. Étant donné le peu de fréquentation de cette ligne les jours de semaine, sauf le jeudi (courses), on peut parfaitement admettre la réduction à 10 des voyages pour la partie allant du champ de courses àla forêt, mais, en ce qui concerne la partie du trajet de Trianon au champ de courses, il parait indispensable à l’ingénieur en chef (Lechalas) de maintenir le minimum de voyages à 30, sinon ce serait une sorte d’abandon de la ligne, car sur cette petite distance, il ne pourra s’établir un trafic appréciable qu’à condition de présenter des départs fréquents.] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)
It is well understood that, at the moment it is only a minimum, the Society is always free to put in place the number of trains necessary to transport passengers who present themselves, that if it will satisfy this requirement, its proper interest is guaranteed, and, in giving greater public satisfaction, its infrustructure will be wisely used, instead of it travelling empty for part of the day to the detriment of its business. Being given the lower frequency of service on weekdays and Saturdays, except Thursdays (racing), we can perfectly allow the reduction to ten trips for those going the racecourse or forest, but, concerning the part of the journey to Trianon racecourse, it is imperative that the Chief Engineer (Lechelas) keeps the minimum to 30, otherwise there will be a kind of abandonment of the line, because for this small distance, it will not be possible to get reasonable traffic with more frequent departures.

— Soulier (Conseiller Génerál of Rouen), 6 May 1908

The service modifications without doubt lowered operating expenses, but the coefficient of use went down dramatically: 0.33 for the first ten months of 1908.[50] The decision to close the small line hit like an axe on 1 November 1908[51] Thus ended the short history of the Trianon tramway, a victim of economics but above all two serious congenital errors:[50] having wanted to make a timetable independent from the Rouen network, and having put its terminus outdoors. The railway was officially disbanded by a decree of 14 September 1911,[51] the rails were lifted, the public highway restored; no material trace of the tramway now stands.

Epilogue

Main article: Rouen tramway
The new Rouen tramway

In 1953 one of the largest electric tramways in France disappeared. It was often an innovator in traction methods, and it had given unmeasurable service to the population of Rouen. Its tramway history may have ended there, as it has in so many other communes. But in the 1980s Rouen — and other large cities such as Nantes and Grenoble — decided that increasing traffic jams and the desire to diversify public transport needed a new mode of public transport. Under the guidance of SIVOM ([Syndicat intercommunal à vocations multiples] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help)), grouping together the communes of Greater Rouen (representing nearly 400,000 inhabitants), discussions started in 1982.

Creating a new mode of transport is hard work. In 1986, CETE (Centre d’étude technique et de l’équipement) put forward a report supporting construction of a modern tramway.[52] A pre-project was launched in September 1987 and led to the Declaration of Public Utility on 22 April 1991.[53] Construction work was undertaken by GEC-Alsthom and on 17 December 1994 Rouen found it had a tramway once more, with the inaugaration of its first Y-shaped line.

Sources

  • Bertin, Hervé (1994). Petits trains et tramways haut-normands ("Small trains and tramways of Upper Normandy") (in French). Le Mans: Cénomane/La Vie du Rail. ISBN 2-905596-48-1.
  • Chapuis, Jacques. "Les transports urbains dans l'agglomération rouennaise ("Urban transport in the Greater Rouen area")". [La Vie du Rail] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (in French) (71). ISSN 1141-7447. {{cite journal}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |journal= (help)
  • Chapuis, Jacques. "Les transports urbains dans l'agglomération rouennaise ("Urban transport in the Greater Rouen area")". [La Vie du Rail] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (in French) (72). ISSN 1141-7447. {{cite journal}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |journal= (help)
  • Chapuis, Jacques. "Les transports urbains dans l'agglomération rouennaise ("Urban transport in the Greater Rouen area")". [La Vie du Rail] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (in French) (73). ISSN 1141-7447. {{cite journal}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |journal= (help)
  • Chapuis, Jacques. "Les transports urbains dans l'agglomération rouennaise ("Urban transport in the Greater Rouen area")". [La Vie du Rail] Error: {{Lang}}: text has italic markup (help) (in French) (74). ISSN 1141-7447. {{cite journal}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |journal= (help)
  • Chapuis, Jacques; Naillon, E., Les transports urbains dans l’agglomération rouennaise ("Urban transport in the Greater Rouen area") (in French), vol. in the Summary of the four articles cited immediately above{{citation}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)
  • Marquis, Jean-Claude (1983). Petite histoire illustrée des transports en Seine-Inférieure au s-XIXeme ("Short Illustrated History of 19th Century Transport in Seine-Infériere") (in French). Rouen: Centre national de documentation pédagogique.
  • Template:Pdf Bayeux, Jean-Luc (2003). "Transports en commun dans l'agglomération rouennaise[[Category:Articles containing French-language text]] ("Public transport in the Greater Rouen area")" (PDF). Collection Histoire(s) d’agglo (in French) (26). Agglomération de Rouen. ISBN 2-913914-66-7. ISSN 1291-8296. {{cite journal}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help)
  • Chapuis, Jacques; Hulot, René. "Le tramway du Trianon à la forêt du Rouvray ("The Forest of Rouvray Tramway")". Chemins de fer régionaux et urbains ("Regional and Urban Railways") (in French) (51). ISSN 1141-7447. {{cite journal}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |journal= (help)
  • Courant, René (1982). Le Temps des tramways ("Railway Days") (in French). Menton: Éditions du Cabri. ISBN 2-903310-22-X. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  • Domengie, H. (1989). Les Petits Trains de jadis : Ouest de la France ("Small trains of yore: Western France") (in French). Breil-sur-Roya: Éditions du Cabri. ISBN 2-903310-87-4. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)

Notes

  1. ^ Nowadays the Pont Pierre-Corneille
  2. ^ Nowadays the Rue Jean Lecanuet
  3. ^ Nowadays the Boulevard des Belges
  4. ^ These new locomotives reused some elements of state cars on the "Nogentais Railway".
  5. ^ In the end, the cemetary was never built on this site, and so did not add any passenger traffic to the line.
  6. ^ It may be surprising that the Trianon tramway chose steam whereas the Rouen trams were electric, but the Trianon services were more rural with lower population density than the more urban Rouen ones. If this were not the guiding factor, the Trianon tramway could have all been part of the Rouen network, but this idea did not last long.
  7. ^ This statement is contradicted in some published articles, by Chapuis & Hulot, p. 30 and by Domengie, p. 30. The relevant information in the departmental archives relating to M. Lechalas, chief engineer, and moreso those contained in the Soulier Report given to the Conseil général of Seine-Inférieure on 6 May 1908, imply that diesel-electric locomotives were definitely used before steam locomotives, see Bertin, pp. 51–52 and Marquis, p. 109.
  8. ^ The coefficient of use of a railway is usually calculated by dividing expenses by receipts. In many railway articles, it is given as the inverse; so that a positive result appears better than 1, which may not be clear to the reader
  9. ^ There is no record of the fate of the old locomotives, perhaps they were bought for the netwrk in Drôme which used the same kind of infrastructure; it is even possible that they were made into carriages as happened in Decauville, La Baule.
  10. ^ The "T" suffix signifies the presence of a built-in tender on the chassis of the locomotive itself, so that a separate tender wagon was not required.
  11. ^ This photograph was taken at the Valence depot, but the same type ran on the Trianon line.

References

  1. ^ a b c Bertin, pp. 14, 184
  2. ^ Marquis, p. 100.
  3. ^ Chapuis & 71, pp. 7–12 has the details of the lines' alignments.
  4. ^ The Rue Jeanne-d’Arc that now leads directly to the station was not extended until the station was rebuilt in 1928. Bertin, p. 184
  5. ^ Chapuis & 71, p. 16.
  6. ^ a b c d Bertin, p. 186.
  7. ^ Chapuis & 71, pp. 36–38 has a detailed description of the network's rolling stock.
  8. ^ "Les premiers tramways á Paris". {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |site= ignored (help)|accessdate=17 June 2010}} ("The first tramways in Paris")Template:Fr icon
  9. ^ Bertin, p. 186 This became part of the Bolloré group.
  10. ^ For the opening dates see Bertin, p. 186
  11. ^ a b c Marquis, p. 105.
  12. ^ Chapuis & 71, p. 35.
  13. ^ a b Chapuis & 71, p. 17
  14. ^ Bertin, pp. 186–187 Map of the network.
  15. ^ a b Chapuis & 71, p. 19.
  16. ^ a b c d e Bertin, p. 187.
  17. ^ Chapuis & 71, pp. 52–54 Description of rolling stock.
  18. ^ Marquis, pp. 106–107.
  19. ^ Chapuis & 71, pp. 22–23 Lines' description
  20. ^ Marquis, p. 106.
  21. ^ A runaway tram derailed at the foot of a steep slope, at the bottom of the avenue leading to Rouen's main cemetary. One person was killed and three injured. See Chapuis & 71, p. 24
  22. ^ Marquis, p. 108.
  23. ^ a b c d e f Bertin, p. 188 Cite error: The named reference "ReferenceB" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  24. ^ "Les Chemins de Fer Secondaires de France[[Category:Articles containing French-language text]]". Retrieved 18 June 2010. {{cite web}}: URL–wikilink conflict (help); Unknown parameter |site= ignored (help) ("Secondary railways in France") Template:Fr icon
  25. ^ Bertin, p. 188.
  26. ^ Bayeux, p. 12.
  27. ^ Chapuis & 72, pp. 46–49.
  28. ^ Chapuis & Naillon, p. 22.
  29. ^ a b Bertin, p. 189
  30. ^ Chapuis & 74, pp. 24–29 has a description of the rolling stock.
  31. ^ Chapuis & 74, p. 30.
  32. ^ Bertin, p. 193.
  33. ^ The Managing Director of the CTR, M. Triozon, was killed in the bombing of 17 August 1942. Chapuis & 72, p. 56
  34. ^ a b Bertin, p. 191
  35. ^ Bertin, p. 192.
  36. ^ Bertin, p. 195.
  37. ^ Chapuis & 71, p. 14.
  38. ^ Chapuis & 71, pp. 39–40.
  39. ^ a b c d Bertin, p. 195
  40. ^ Chapuis & 71, pp. 40–41.
  41. ^ a b Bertin, p. 50.
  42. ^ a b c d Bertin, p. 51
  43. ^ Chapuis & Hulot, p. 26.
  44. ^ Chapuis & Hulot, p. 27.
  45. ^ Marquis, p. 109.
  46. ^ Domengie, p. 103.
  47. ^ FOr a short description, see Chapuis & Hulot, p. 30.
  48. ^ a b Bertin, p. 52
  49. ^ Bertin, pp. 52–53.
  50. ^ a b c Bertin, p. 53
  51. ^ a b Chapuis & Hulot, p. 28.
  52. ^ Bertin, p. 196.
  53. ^ Bertin, p. 197.

Further reading

  • Encyclopédie générale des transports – Chemins de fer ("General Transport Encyclopaedia – Railways") (in French). Vol. 12. Valignat: Éditions de l'Ormet. 1994. ISBN 906575-13-5. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: length (help)

See also

External links

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