The LGV Sud-Est (French: ''Ligne à Grande Vitesse Sud-Est''; English: ''South East high-speed line)'' is a French high-speed rail line which connects the

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

and

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

areas. It was France's first high-speed rail line. The inauguration of the first section between Saint-Florentin and Sathonay-Camp by President

François Mitterrand François Marie Adrien Maurice Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was President of France, serving under that position from 1981 to 1995, the longest time in office in the history of France. As First Secretary of the Socialist Party, ...

on 22 September 1981 marked the beginning of the re-invigoration of French passenger rail service. Other LGV projects have extended the reach of high-speed trains that use this line, including the LGV Rhône-Alpes and LGV Méditerranée to the south and the LGV Interconnexion Est to the north. These connecting lines shortened journey times between Paris and the southeast of France (

Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fran ...

, Montpellier and

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

), Switzerland and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, as well as between the southeast and the north and west of France, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

. The LGV Rhône-Alpes, Sud-Est and Méditerranée, taken as a whole, were also nicknamed the ''City To Coast (C2C) Highway'' ("Ville à la Mer").

Route

The line crosses six

departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

, from north to south: *

Seine-et-Marne Seine-et-Marne () is a department in the Île-de-France region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square kilometres (2,284 square miles); it roughly covers its ...

* Yonne *

Côte-d'Or Côte-d'Or (; literally, "Golden Slope") is a département in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 534,124.Saône-et-Loire Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part. Saône-et-Loire is ...

* Ain *

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

The TGV system is compatible with the regular rail network, avoiding the need for new infrastructure construction to reach existing train stations in the dense urban areas of Paris and Lyon. The distance from Paris ( Gare de Lyon) to Lyon ( Part-Dieu) is . The LGV route is long; by avoiding built-up areas between Paris and Lyon (particularly

Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earl ...

) this enables a route shorter than the regular line, which is long. There are no tunnels. The line includes various connectors to the regular rail network: *at Pasilly-Aisy towards

, and further through the

Jura Mountains The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Fre ...

to Vallorbe and

Lausanne Lausanne ( , , , ) ; it, Losanna; rm, Losanna. is the capital and largest city of the Swiss French speaking canton of Vaud. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway between the Jura Mountains and the Alps, and fac ...

Neuchâtel Neuchâtel (, , ; german: Neuenburg) is the capital of the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel, situated on the shoreline of Lake Neuchâtel. Since the fusion in 2021 of the municipalities of Neuchâtel, Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Peseux, and Valangin, ...

and Zurich *at Mâcon-Pont-de-Veyle towards Bourg-en-Bresse and the

Savoie Savoie (; Arpitan: ''Savouè'' or ''Savouè-d'Avâl''; English: ''Savoy'' ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Southeastern France. Located in the French Alps, its prefecture is Chambéry. In 2019, Savoie had a population o ...

department *at Saint-Florentin *at Le Creusot station *at Mâcon-Loché station These last three are used by service trains or in order to divert passenger trains if needed. The line runs next to the A5 autoroute for and the N79 road for . For its full length, a -wide area has been reserved for a telecommunication artery.

Line specifics

The line has a surface area of in comparison Charles de Gaulle Airport occupies with an average width of . Platforms are wide, with a space between track centres of . The line was designed for a nominal speed of , with a minimum radius curve of although seven curves were made to a smaller radius, but no less than . In total, the line comprises of track. This is formed by UIC 60 () rails placed in lengths, welded in place (with certain segmented sections). The concrete sleepers are formed of two blocks of concrete tied together by a metal strut. There are 1660 sleepers per kilometre. Traction power is supplied by eight EDF substations at 25 kV AC, 50 Hz. The

catenary In physics and geometry, a catenary (, ) is the curve that an idealized hanging chain or cable assumes under its own weight when supported only at its ends in a uniform gravitational field. The catenary curve has a U-like shape, superficia ...

is fed by an inverted phase "feeder" cable, which is equivalent to a 50 kV supply and reinforces the available power, enabling a singe trainset to draw up to 14 MW. Signalling relies on high-frequency track circuits, signals being transmitted directly to the driver's console. There are lineside marker boards indicating the limits of each block section, but no signals as such. The highest point on the line is above sea level, near the town of Liernais, north of Gare du Creusot. This is near the range dividing the Seine and Loire river valleys, and not far from the Rhône river valley.

Stations

The LGV Sud-Est serves the following stations: * Le Creusot * Mâcon-Loché * Lyon Part-Dieu Le-Creusot and Mâcon-Loché are basic stations situated away from built-up areas. They have four tracks, with the two central tracks being reserved for through trains, and the side tracks serving stopping trains on two side platforms.

Costs

From 1996, the track of the LGV Sud-Est was renewed at a cost of FRF 2 billion, or about €300 million.

History

* 10 July 1967: SNCF research launches project C 03 on high speed rail, titled "Rail Transport Possibilities through New Infrastructure" * 26 March 1971: new line project approved by inter-ministerial committee * 23 March 1976: declaration of public utility signed by Prime Minister

Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as ...

* 7 December 1976: works commence at

Écuisses Écuisses () is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. Le Creusot TGV station is situated in the commune. See also *Communes of the Saône-et-Loire department The following is ...

Saône-et-Loire Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part. Saône-et-Loire is ...

* 14 June 1979: first rails laid near

Montchanin Montchanin () is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. See also *Communes of the Saône-et-Loire department The following is a list of the 565 communes of the Saône-et-Loire ...

* 20 November 1980: track laying ends in

Cluny Cluny () is a commune in the eastern French department of Saône-et-Loire, in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. It is northwest of Mâcon. The town grew up around the Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , ...

* 26 February 1981: trainset no. 16 ( SNCF TGV Sud-Est) breaks the world record for rail speed at 380 km/h between

Courcelles-Frémoy Courcelles-Frémoy () is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department in eastern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas region ...

Côte-d'Or Côte-d'Or (; literally, "Golden Slope") is a département in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 534,124.Dyé, Yonne in a gradually descending portion of the line * 22 September 1981: inauguration of the first section ( Saint-Florentin to

) by the President of the Republic,

* 27 September 1981: commercial service begins * 25 September 1983: service begins on the northern section (

Combs-la-Ville Combs-la-Ville () is a commune in the south-eastern suburbs of Paris, in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France in north-central France. It is located from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Sénart, created in the 1970s. ...

to Saint-Florentin) * 31 August 1992: derailment at 270 km/h of a TGV in Macon-Loché station; several passengers waiting on the platform are slightly injured by flying ballast * 13 December 1992: service begins on northern section of LGV Rhône-Alpes ( Montanay to

Saint-Quentin-Fallavier Saint-Quentin-Fallavier is a commune in the Isère department, and the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, in southeastern France. Geography Saint-Quentin Fallavier is located in Isère, at the boundary of the department of Rhône, along the A43 ...

) * 26 May 1994: service begins on LGV Interconnexion Est (connection with LGV Nord) * March 1996: beginning of line renovation works (replacement of ballast and points, works designed to last until 2006) * 2 June 1996: service begins at the junction with

Villeneuve-Saint-Georges Villeneuve-Saint-Georges () is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. People from Villeneuve-Saint-Georges are called ''Villeneuvois'' in French. History Prehistory and Antiquity Vil ...

by the Coubert triangle

References

External links

High-speed rail lines site (in French)
{{High-speed railway lines Sud-Est Railway lines opened in 1981 Railway lines opened in 1983