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The Rennes Metro () () is a
light metro A medium-capacity system (MCS), also known as light rapid transit or light metro, is a rail transport system with a capacity greater than light rail, but less than typical heavy-rail rapid transit. MCS trains are usually 1 to 4 cars. Most medi ...
system serving the city of
Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...
in
Brittany Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. Opened on 19 March 2002, it made Rennes the smallest city in the world to have a metro system from 2002 to 2008. Currently the system contains two lines, Line A and B. It has 28 stations and stretches , with the majority of its route underground. Line A connects the quarter of Villejean to the quarter of Poterie, passing the city center. It is based on the
Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...
VAL (véhicule automatique léger or light automatic vehicle in English) technology. In 2023, approximately 145,000 trips a day were made on Line A, and 80,000 on Line B. A second line, Line B, was opened on 20 September 2022. It connects 15 stations, running north-east to south-west between Cesson-Sévigné and Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande. Two of these stations are interchangeable with Line A, forming an x-shaped network. It is the first metro line in the world to use the NeoVal technology. Originally planned to open in 2020, the line suffered multiple delays, mainly due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. After the opening of Line B, Rennes became the smallest city in the world with two metro lines.


History

During the 1960s, Henri Fréville (the Mayor of Rennes) discussed the return of the city's tramway which had been dissolved by the Mayor's predecessor, Yves Milon. However, the former tramway was disliked due to it being out of tune with the car-centric mentality of the city. When
Charles de Gaulle Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free France, Free French Forces against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government of the French Re ...
visited Rennes on 31 March 1969, he remarked to Henri Fréville, "When you have a million inhabitants, you can have your metro." The planning document underpinning urban transport structure ('' plan de déplacements urbains)'' in Rennes underwent a redesign which began in September 1984. This redesign was brought about by Mayor Edmond Hervé, who sought to ease congestion and reduce its future risk by remapping the city centre. Between June and September 1986, SITCAR conducted the first studies considering the creation of a public transport system, separated from road traffic, for Rennes in response to the continued increases in passenger frequency. Several studies were to be conducted considering two different modes of transport: tramway and light railway. * 1986: City Council decides to create a transport line on a north-western/south-eastern axis. * 1989: The municipality decides to use VAL technology. * 1992: The A Line project receives planning and environmental approvals. * 1997: Beginning of work on Line A. * 2002: Opening of Line A. * 2005: Three park-and-ride lots were set up * 2006: Creation of Korrigo card * 2007: City Council decides to create a second metro line (B) * 2010: The municipality decides to use CityVal technology. * 2011: The B Line project receives planning and environmental approvals. * 2014: Beginning of work on Line B * 2022: Opening of Line B


Line A

Opened on 15 March 2002, Line A is based on the
Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...
VAL (''véhicule automatique léger'' or ''light automatic vehicle'') technology. The Line A runs roughly northwest to southeast from ''J.F. Kennedy'' to ''La Poterie'' via Gare de Rennes (served by ''Gares'' metro station), with fifteen stations (thirteen of which are underground). Services run between 05:20 and 00:40 each day (except Thursday, Friday and Saturday between 05:20 and 01:35), and with a waiting time of approximately 80 seconds between trains. From end to end, it takes around 16 minutes, with an average train speed of . All stations are equipped with
platform screen doors Platform screen doors (PSDs), also known as platform edge doors (PEDs), are used at some train, rapid transit and people mover stations to separate the platform from train tracks, as well as on some bus rapid transit, tram and light rail ...
and
lift Lift or LIFT may refer to: Physical devices * Elevator, or lift, a device used for raising and lowering people or goods ** Paternoster lift, a type of lift using a continuous chain of cars which do not stop ** Patient lift, or Hoyer lift, mobile ...
s. The system has 30 trains, each weighing and long, with a capacity of 170 passengers. In January 2005, three park-and-ride lots were set up, offering 900 places to motorists. Two more opened in 2006–2007, able to accommodate an additional 700 vehicles. On 1 March 2006, a card called KorriGo was created as a supplement to the ticket system to improve the metro traffic and the city's bus network. The line is maintained by Service des Transports en Commun de l'Agglomération Rennaise (STAR), and managed by
Keolis Keolis is a French transportation company that operates public transport systems all over the world. It manages bus, rapid transit, tram, coach networks, rental bikes, car parks, water taxi, cable car, trolleybus, and funicular services. B ...
. It has a staff of approximately 100. It is operated from a control centre (''poste de commande centralisée'') situated in Chantepie. 120 cameras monitor the stations. The station at La Poterie and viaducts on the line were designed by
Foster + Partners Foster and Partners (also Foster + Partners) is a British international architecture firm with its headquarters in London, England. It was founded in 1967 by British architect and designer Norman Foster. The firm has been involved in the design ...
. With a population of just 205,000 inhabitants for city proper (in 2002), Rennes was the smallest city in the world to boast a metro until 2008 (when
Lausanne Metro Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Swiss French-speaking canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway between the Jura Mountains and the Alps, and facing the ...
opened). However in 2013, 425,000 people (211 000 in Rennes) are served by the network in 43 municipalities. On average, there are 135,000 metro trips each day; this figure is expected to rise to 180,000 in coming years, leading to possible gridlock during the rush hours.


Stations

The station names have been chosen for the nearest existing streets or for points of interest near the station locations. * J.F. Kennedy ( former US President) * Villejean-Université:
University of Rennes 1 The University of Rennes 1 was a public university located in Rennes, France. It was founded in 1970, after splitting of the historic University of Rennes into two universities. On January 1, 2023, the University of Rennes 1 merged with five gra ...
and
University of Rennes 2 Rennes 2 University (UR2; , officially Université Rennes-II Haute-Bretagne) is a public university located in Upper Brittany, France. It is one of the four universities of the Academy of Rennes. The main campus is situated in the northwest of ...
* Pontchaillou (elevated): Teaching hospital * Anatole France ( French poet and journalist) * Sainte-Anne ( French queen and Duchess of Brittany): city-center * République: city-center * Charles de Gaulle ( former French President): city-center *
Gares Puente la Reina (Spanish language, Spanish meaning "the Queen's bridge"; ) is a town and Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Navarre, in northern Spain. Puente la Reina li ...
(
SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (, , SNCF ) is France's national State-owned enterprise, state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the Rail transport in France, country's national rail traffic along with th ...
interchange): city-center * Jacques Cartier ( French navigator and explorer) * Clemenceau ( World War I French Prime Minister) * Henri Fréville (former mayor of Rennes) * Italie * Triangle * Blosne * La Poterie (elevated) Station signage is in French and Gallo at Charles de Gaulle station and French and
Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...
at Gares station.


Gallery

File:Bus et métro station Poterie (5618280569).jpg, An elevated section of Metro File:Métro Rennes Station Sainte-Anne Quais.JPG, The subsurface station, Sainte-Anne Quais File:Rennes Métro Station République.JPG, République station File:Rennes-métro République-salle billets.jpg, République station File:Métro JFK1.jpg, Kennedy station File:Station Charles de Gaulle Métro de Rennes.JPG, Charles de Gaulle station File:Métro Rennes Pontchaillou.JPG, Pontchaillou station


Line B

Opened on 20 September 2022, Line B is based on the new NeoVal technology. The line runs north-east to south-west between ''Cesson - Viasilva'' and ''Saint-Jacques - Gaîté'' with 15 stations (12 of which underground). The line is interchangeable with Line A at two stations, ''Sainte-Anne'' and ''Gare'', and two other stations, ''Saint-Germain'' and ''Colombier'', are within walking distance to Line A. The two terminal stations, ''Saint-Jacques - Gaîté'' and ''Cesson - Viasilva'', as well as ''Les Gayeulles'' are served by the Parc relais (ride-and-park service) operated by STAR. The north-eastern end of the line is served via a viaduct nearly long. The viaduct is held up by 70 piers, with its average height between the bottom of its deck and the ground , and the tallest pier tall. The viaduct serves three stations: ''Cesson - Viasilva'', ''Atlante'', and ''Beaulieu - Université''. At the end of the viaduct on the "Beaulieu - Université" station side, the line goes underground via an opening on the ground next to the parking lots of the university residence. With the new line about to be open, the operator of Rennes' public transport system, Service des Transports en Commun de l'Agglomération Rennaise (STAR) have announced changes for the bus network, scheduled to take effect on 24 October, a month after the opening of Line B. In addition, the bus line C3, currently having the same shade of green as the future Line B, will change its colour to yellow. To promote the newly opening line, STAR announced that the entire Line B will be free on the first week of its operation, until Sunday 25 September. In addition, there will also be various celebration activities held at 5 stations: Saint-Jacques - Gaîté, La Courrouze, Cleunay, Gros-Chêne, and Cesson - Viasilva, as well as exhibitions of the new metro at Sainte-Anne station. On the day of opening, both lines of the metro network saw record-breaking daily ridership, with 155,000 riderships on Line A and 120,000 riderships on Line B, and an estimated 10% of the riderships transferring between the two lines. The two transfer stations, "Sainte-Anne" and "Gares", also saw the highest daily ridership of 23,000 and 15,000. The operator STAR have expected a daily ridership of 110,000 in the long term.


Stations

* Saint-Jacques - Gaîté * La Courrouze * Cleunay * Mabilais (4th tallest building in Rennes, Le Mabilay) * Colombier: city-center * Gares : city-center * Saint-Germain (Saint-Germain Church): city-center * Sainte-Anne: city-center * Jules Ferry ( French statesman and republican philosopher) * Gros-Chêne * Les Gayeulles (Park of Gayeulles) * Joliot-Curie - Chateaubriand (lycée Joliot-Curie and lycée Chateaubriand) * Beaulieu - Université (
University of Rennes 1 The University of Rennes 1 was a public university located in Rennes, France. It was founded in 1970, after splitting of the historic University of Rennes into two universities. On January 1, 2023, the University of Rennes 1 merged with five gra ...
, Institut national des sciences appliquées de Rennes, and École nationale supérieure de chimie de Rennes) * Atalante (technopole of Rennes Atlante) * Cesson - Viasilva


Social, economic and cultural impacts


Urban opening-up and redevelopment

The Rennes Metro helps to open up peripheral districts such as Maurepas, Gros-Chêne and Les Gayeulles, as well as the north-eastern quarter of the metropolis, thanks to reduced journey times: the first line put one in two Rennes residents within 600 m or a 10-minute walk of a metro station; the opening of the second line brings this number to three in four. Thus, the journey time between Cleunay and Beaulieu has been reduced from 40 to 20 minutes and no longer requires taking two different buses; that between the suburban commune of Betton and the Mabilais district has been reduced from 60 minutes, taking two different buses, to 35 to 40 minutes by combining the metro and metropolitan bus lines. These reduced journey times are accompanied by an increase in the use of public transport with a growth of 9% in most of the municipalities of the metropolis, 4% in Acigné, 21% in Cesson-Sévigné, Rennes and Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande, 22% in Bruz and even 68% in Chevaigné in 2023 compared to 2019. The metro adds to the "archipelago" urbanization of the agglomeration which avoids urban sprawl and encourages the use of transport, which is higher than in the Nantes agglomeration.


See also

*
List of metro systems This list of metro systems includes electrified rapid transit train systems worldwide. In some parts of the world, metro systems are referred to as subways, undergrounds, tubes, mass rapid transit (MRT), metrô or U-Bahn. 204 cities in 65 cou ...


References


External links


STAR – official website

STAR – new metro, new network

Official website for the Line B project
(in French)
Map of Rennes Métro
(in French)

{{France Metro Tramway Underground rapid transit in France Rennes Rail transport in Brittany VAL people movers 2002 establishments in France