More trains are needed between Nantes, Pornic and Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie. All passengers who are used to using this line agree with this. Emilie, for example, has to get up early every day to go to work: “There is only one train in the morning who makes me arrive on time. He’s at 7 o’clock. The next one is at 11 o’clock.” In the evening, it’s no better. Louise is 17 and she’s a work-study student in Nantes. “To get back to Sainte-Pazanne, I have to wait at the station for an hour,” she confides. And the trains that run are crowded ! Mathéo, a student in Nantes, dreads Fridays: “We can hardly get on board, some people even have to stay on the quayside”.
Current railway tracks cannot accommodate more trains
The political leaders of our territory are displaying an ambition: to double the frequency of trains. There would thus be a train every thirty minutes between Nantes and Sainte-Pazanne. Then a train every hour on the sections between Sainte-Pazanne and Pornicas well as between Sainte-Pazanne and Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie. But the current railway lines do not allow this. Frédéric Etève, the SNCF network director for the Brittany and Pays de la Loire regions, explains: “These are single-track lines, trains must share a single traffic line. To pass each other, they must park in stations where there is what is called a passing track“. Today, there are not enough to increase the frequency of trains.
By the end of the year, engineers will sift through this Y-shaped train lineto know how to arrange it. “He “We will probably have to decide on three stops where we will split the tracks” explains Frédéric Etève. Some stations have already been identified: those of Bouguenais, Saint-Hilaire-de-Chaléons and Soullans. The stop planned near Nantes-Atlantique airport will also have a passing track. And the hypothesis of a new stop on this train line on the island of Nantes, near Beaulieuwill also be studied. Finally, all the signaling elements will be scrutinized. They will certainly have to be replaced by other, more modern ones.
First improvement in 2026
The study will last one to two years. It will cost two million euros50% of which is covered by the State, 40% by the region, and 10% by Nantes Métropole. Then comes the time for the work. This is why we should not wait for these new trains before 2032. A slight improvement is however expected for 2026: the line will be enhanced with two additional round trips.
The train line between Nantes, Pornic and Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie in figures:
– The line passes through 14 stations.
– Every day, 4,900 people use the line between Nantes and Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie. There are 3,800 every day between Nantes and Pornic.
– Today there are 9 daily round trips between Nantes and Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie. And 7 round trips between Nantes and Pornic.
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