Saturday November 9, 2024, the association Friends of the Garabit viaduc organized an event trip from Béziers to Neussargues, on the Causses line (Aubrac train).
“What I like most about this line are the landscapes. We leave for Béziers in summer and we arrive here in winter!” laughed the driver of the Intercités event train linking Béziers to Neussargues. The train has just stopped at Aumont-Aubrac station this Saturday, November 9, 2024 at 2:13 p.m. On board, 220 privileged people were able to enjoy the landscapes of Occitanie and Auvergne, with a gourmet stopover in Aumont-Aubrac , in the station which has become a grocery store selling local produce (see insert). The day was organized by the association Friends of the Garabit Viaduc (Amiga) and the Region, to mark the northern reopening of the Causses line (Aubrac line), between Saint-Chély-d'Apcher and Neussargues in Cantal.
An investment of €43 million
On the Cantal section, the line had to be interrupted for several months on certain portions in order to replace the old double-head rails, for an investment of 43 million euros (91.5% from the State and 8.5% from SNCF Réseau). Patricia Rochès, president of the Amiga and mayor of Coren-les-Eaux (Cantal) was on the trip: “If the work had not been done, part of the line would have been permanently closed from Saint-Chély. It restarted on 1is November.” A daily round-trip Intercités will serve, from Béziers, the stations of Bédarieux, Millau, Campagnac, Aumont-Aubrac, Saint-Flour and Neussargues via the Garabit viaduct (see insert). A work watched like milk on the fire: “The track has been renewed. Every year, a technical visit takes place and every three years, rope access technicians inspect the structure.”
The Garabit Viaduct, a UNESCO World Heritage Site?
Built between 1880 and 1884, the Garabit viaduct linked Béziers to Paris by crossing the Truyère gorges. The work is the work of Gustave Eiffel and Léon Boyer, a young Lozère engineer from the Ponts et Chaussées department. With a span of 165 meters, its arch made the Garabit viaduct the highest viaduct in the world. Classified as a historic monument in 2017, the structure is now a candidate for World Heritage (UNESCO) status with six other arch viaducts. This transnational project, by Germany, is well underway. The Garabit viaduct consists of 20 tonnes of cast iron, 40 tonnes of steel, 3,100 tonnes of wrought iron and 678,768 rivets. The deck measures 564.9 meters in length, located at an altitude of 835 meters, 90 meters above low water (122 meters during construction).
Same satisfaction from Alain Astruc, mayor of Peyre-en-Aubrac, who came to welcome the visitors, to see the local station come back to life with the train and the grocery store: “It’s a fight that we have been waging for a very long time. It is a renewal, essential for the area. We will also demolish an old building opposite to create a dozen housing units. There will also be a multimodal platform and a parking lot .” Tourism is also in the crosshairs, since the sector is at the crossroads of several hiking trails including Santiago de Compostela and Saint-Guilhem. And the councilor has another idea in mind for a more ecological future: “We hope to get a night train that will connect Paris.”
The Occitan part to be modernized
In the station car park, stands selling Aubrac products set up for the occasion by the Peyre-en-Aubrac traders' association allowed travelers to stock up on Lozerian food. Jean-Luc Gibelin, vice-president of the Region, purchasing in hand, did not miss the opportunity to return to the renaissance of rail: “This line is close to our hearts. Today we are marking this reopening. There is still work to be done on the Occitan part and we are once again counting on the State, in order to perpetuate the line and improve regularity.” At 3:15 p.m., the train (and its passengers) left for Neussargues, as it will do every day from now on. With, however, one caveat from Patricia Rochès: “Since the return of the line, there have been four cancellations. This is not very reliable. I communicated this to Intercités France, it is not possible to invest €43 million and not plan trains.” But for one of the most beautiful railway lines in France, the lights remain green.
MIDI LIBRE – M. P
The grocery store at Aumont-Aubrac station, a good landmark!
As soon as the Causses train stopped at Aumont-Aubrac, the day's travelers entered the station, not to get a ticket or make a complaint but to do their shopping. Because here, instead of the hall of the pas perdus and the ticket office, a grocery store (Le Re'Peyre) was created at the initiative of Estelle and Steve, the managers, last July: “Our idea was to present local products. We live in Peyre-en-Aubrac and we offered SNCF to rent the station to transform it into a grocery store selling local products. The management responded a year later and we have been integrated into the Mille et une gares project of Gares & Connexions SNCF.” To rehabilitate the place, the public company therefore financed part of the structural work: “We applied and we were selected in 2021.” The work followed, with a station atmosphere, precisely: “We have retained an industrial side; kept the soul of the place. And we wanted to employ local craftsmen.” Cold meats, cheeses, wines, beers and various local products fill the displays beautifully, with a small bar area: “People from all over the world pass through here. I had to brush up on my English,” laughs Estelle. “We take our products along the railway line, like in the days of freight trains,” she adds. Here, the rail adventure continues but light years away from the SNCF sandwich.
France
