Latour-de-Carol

Latour-de-Carol

La Tor de Querol
Latour-de-Carol La Tor de Querol
Commune
	Railway station
	Coat of arms
	Location of Latour-de-Carol
	Latour-de-Carol Latour-de-Carol
	Coordinates: 42°27′57″N 1°53′23″E / 42.4658°N 1.8897°E
Country	France
Region	Occitania
Department	Pyrénées-Orientales
Arrondissement	Prades
Canton	Les Pyrénées catalanes
Intercommunality	Pyrénées Cerdagne
Government
• Mayor (2001–2008)	Albert Truno
Area 1	12.63 km2 (4.88 sq mi)
Population (2021)	461
• Density	37/km2 (95/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	66095 /66760
Elevation	1,209–2,080 m (3,967–6,824 ft) ; (avg. 1,248 m or 4,094 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Latour-de-Carol (Catalan: La Tor de Querol) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.

Geography

Localization

Latour-de-Carol is located in the canton of Les Pyrénées catalanes and in the arrondissement of Prades.

Transport

The village's main claim to fame is as the site of the international railway station, Gare de Latour-de-Carol-Enveitg (Catalan: La Tor de Querol-Enveig). This station is the terminus of three lines, each with different gauges:

the Spanish state operator RENFE's 1,668 mm (5 ft 5+21⁄32 in) gauge line running north from Barcelona via Ripoll
the French state operator SNCF's 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) gauge line running south from Toulouse via Foix
SNCF's 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) gauge line (known as the Yellow Train) running west from Villefranche-de-Conflent

As the French and Spanish tracks are different gauges, no trains run the whole way from Toulouse to Barcelona. Passengers have to change trains, which are however no longer scheduled to offer direct connections. Occasional freight-trains cross the border and are worked to Puigcerda, where freight is transferred. The double-track line to Puigcerda consists of two separate tracks with different gauges and electrified at different currents.

September 2011 - the French (standard) gauge line across the border is out of use. Spanish passenger trains run across into France to meet up with the French line. No freight services currently operate. Judging from the Google maps satellite photos, the French line into Puigcerda has been severed and the alignment of the Spanish line changed. The sidings served by the French lines are being left to nature, although the Spanish lines seem very well maintained.

European route E09 and part of the Route nationale 20 connect Latour-de-Carol with Bourg-Madame (near the border with Spain) and Foix.