A major transformation is about to disrupt the most used railway line in France. Indeed, in November, the Paris-Lyon TGV line will have to close for several days.
A considerable impact on the daily lives of thousands of users. The Paris-Lyon TGV line, the busiest in France, will close in November 2024 in order to undergo a transformation.
Commissioned in 1981, the Paris-Lyon line is a vital artery of the French rail network. It notably makes it possible to serve the south of France via Marseille, Nice, Nîmes and even Montpellier. It can even go as far as Spain as well.
60 kilometers long, 240 trains, on average, travel this line every day, or around a third of France’s high-speed traffic.
Thus, being often saturated, it is time for this artery to undergo a refurbishment, rather useful for the years to come.
Consequently, and in order not to impact business travel, the SNCF has decided to carry out this major work during the long weekend of November 11, from Friday November 8 at 11 p.m. to Wednesday November 13 at 4 a.m., i.e. a closure of four days.
What alternatives?
Aware of the inconvenience that this closure will cause for its users, the SNCF has planned several solutions, even if these will still affect their travel habits.
During this period, the high-speed trains that will be maintained will have to run on traditional lines. This will notably lead to a considerable increase in travel times.
For example, a journey between Paris and Nîmes should last 7 hours, the same duration as by car.
The number of trains in circulation will also decrease significantly during this weekend and certain stations will not be able to be served. Le Creusot TGV, Mâcon Loché TGV, Lyon Saint-Exupéry TGV, Marne-la-Vallée Chessy, Aéroport Charles de Gaulle 2 TGV and Valence TGV Rhône-Alpes Sud will be the stops affected by this measure.
In addition to TGVs, this disruption should also affect certain TER and Intercités trains, as well as trains from the Italian company Trenitalia, which also operates on this route.
Although this work may not please users, it is nevertheless important for the future of this line and the benefits for them should, ultimately, be considerable.
Indeed, from 2025, the regularity of traffic on the line should significantly improve. In the longer term, SNCF has announced that, by 2030, the capacity of this axis should increase little by little, going from 13 to 16 trains per hour and per direction during peak periods, which is equivalent at a capacity gain of 25%.
