Sncf - Blog Posts

Deux rares wagons de la Grande Guerre viennent d ´arriver au Musée des 2 Guerres de Meaux (77) , Seine et Marne, Ile de France (France)

Un wagon de transport de troupes et un rarissime wagon d ´artillerie qui était couplé avec des pièces de très gros calibre installé sur rails.

Sarreguemines station

One more border station between France and Germany, with a bit of a twist. Sarreguemines in Lorraine is, as its name suggests, on one side of the river Sarre or Saar, with Saarbrücken some 17 km downstream in Germany. Between the two runs a cross-border tram-train, which serves as urban transit within Saarbrücken, and as a small regional train beyond.

The vehicles used by the Saarbahn are dual-voltage (750 V DC for city tram lines, 15 kV AC for DB train lines) Flexity Link units, made by Bombardier. It's the third type of tram-train we've come across, having seen the Siemens Avanto in Mulhouse and the Alstom Citadis Dualis in Châteaubriant. Most trams in Saarbrücken are wrapped in some kind of advertisement, this one for a former exhibit at the former Völklingen Ironworks (something I definitely should talk about someday) - not only did the exhibit end in 2024, but the wrapping is dark, making the atmosphere onboard very dull indeed, especially on a grey day! They didn't think this one though!

Only the one track for the Saarbahn is electrified, so the French trains are all Diesel units. On the day I was there, three generations of DMU were present: the most recent bi-mode Regiolis, a Diesel-only AGC set from the early 2000s (top picture), and a pair of A TER railcars which are equipped for German signalling. A few direct Strasbourg-Saarbrücken services run each day with these "saucisses" as they are nicknamed. We've seen these trains before too - the design is identical to the BR 641s DB Regio have near Basel, and these are nicknamed "Walfisch" in German.

We've seen these trains before, quite recently in fact, but they're back, on a much brighter day to really make their colours pop, and in a different border station between France and Germany.

This is Lauterbourg, the easternmost town in France, in the North-East corner of Alsace, and it shows the contrast between the line on the left-hand side of the Rhine, and the one on the right-hand side. The line from Strasbourg to Wörth am Rhein is not electrified to this day, and only sees local regional traffic. Nonetheless, Lauterbourg appeared to have a massive yard back in the day, now just a flat expanse of disused rails.

At the North end of Lauterbourg station, we find some old German mechanical signals, still in use!

Finally, like in the previous post on these trains, I have an amusing place name to share. It's more funny to pronounce with an English accent than anything else, but it also looks like a game of Countdown gone horribly wrong!

French and German cross-border railcars

Just on the French side of the border, Wissembourg station sees French TERs arriving from Haguenau and Strasbourg, meeting German Regionalbahn from Landau and Neustadt. When a French service doesn't cross the border itself, SNCF and DB services are often synced up, giving us the chance to see both companies' cross-border efforts side by side.

The B 85500 is a brand-new bi-mode (electric and Diesel) multiple unit from the Alstom Régiolis family. While not the first international Régiolis - a tri-voltage electric version runs between Évian and Geneva -, the B 85500 adds autonomous Diesel power. With 30 units on order, it aims to revive and/or intensify cross-border routes into Germany. I was under the impression there was a bit of a gathering at the front end of the train, maybe local politicians marking the type's first visit to Wissembourg?

On the German side meanwhile, we have a standard railcar for what DB regard as a relatively low-density non-electrified regional route, which was closed to passengers for over 20 years between 1975 and 1997. The BR 628/928 (628: power car, 928: trailer car) is a 1980s design. Besides the lack of low floor, there's not a lot wrong with them, and they have comfortable, current DB Regio interiors. More recent types have been used, and if a plan to electrify Landau and Winden stations to allow charging of battery-EMUs goes ahead, there could soon be the latest trains on the German side of Wissembourg station too.

Which brings us to our "I beg your pardon" of the week:

Châteaubriant: a regional rail hard border

Rennes and Nantes, the largest cities in the Western tip of France, could have three direct rail routes connecting them. The one via Redon has always been used in this role; a second, via Laval and Angers, was ridiculously long until the high-speed line to Laval opened and 200 km/h-capable units were adapted for use on it; and a third... has been cut off at Châteaubriant.

The irony is, the Châteaubriant route would be the shortest in distance, at just over 120 km in length, in a fairly simple North-South direction. The trouble is, the line wasn't built with the traffic between the two cities in mind, is mainly single track, and has some steep inclines (1.5% is steep for a train). As such, it has always seen modest levels of traffic, and since the 1980s, it had been falling into disrepair in parts, and become abandoned in others.

The Nantes side saw a resurrection in the early 2010s: the line was electrified and, in 2014, tram-trains began operating. We've seen a tram-train on this blog before, but this service is only technically a tram-train, as it only uses a tram line parallel to the urban tram for a few kilometres inside Nantes, and only making one stop on that stretch. The Alstom Citadis Dualis (SNCF class U 53500) units are effectively regional trains in tram clothing, and are the only tram-trains in France to have onboard toilets.

But in France, local trains are managed by the administrative regions, and Nantes to Châteaubriant is under the authority of Pays de la Loire, so the electric wires, renovated stations and new trains went no higher. Worse, the line has been cut in half by a platform link, as shown above - and a photo on this webpage seems to indicate they used to be joined. So the Rennes side, managed by Bretagne region, has remained without electric power. I remember the stark contrast between the two sides of the regional border when I visited in early 2020: to Nantes, modern infrastructure and trains; to Rennes... nothing, and tracks that were starting to be overgrown!

It turns out the line was indeed closed for repair works at the time, and in 2021, Rennes to Châteaubriant reopened, with first-generation bi-mode Bombardier AGC (B 82500) sets, which only use Diesel power on this route, operating a peak-only service.

In conclusion, the Rennes-Châteaubriant-Nantes route has always been in the shadow of the slightly longer route via Redon, as the latter provided good connections to other major towns on the South Brittany coast: Vannes, Lorient and Quimper. The Châteaubriant route was never double-tracked, and today is a striking illustration of regionalisation, with different levels of investment on either side of the border, and through service now impossible.

I'm a bit low on inspiration and time today (work starting to pile up), so here's a train in the snow from the recent trip to Mulhouse and Thann. The train itself is a bi-mode Regiolis B84500 set, waiting at Mulhouse as the Sun sets.

The Mulhouse-Thann tram-train

Combining a suburban train service with the ability to navigate city streets sounds amazing. People can live nearer to the countryside, get frequent service into town, and, if everything lines up, commute straight into work without changes and avoiding the main station. The complementarity and opportunity to revitalise a branch line all sounds appealing... but a real challenge to implement. In France, only Mulhouse has truly achieved it.

Tram-trains aren't exactly rare in France: there are several lines around Paris, Nantes and Lyon have them (and many more had tram-train projects at some point). But, while the vehicles are capable of running in both modes, they are mostly used as a cheaper way to operate a line. The Nantes-Clisson and Nantes-Châteaubriant tram-trains, for example, which I have ridden, are just regional trains, running on heavy rail nearly all the way, and only stopping where the trains always used to.

Mulhouse is the only place in France to have true tram-train operations as described in the introduction: the tram-trains add traffic to line 3 between Mulhouse central station and Lutterbach, before switching to train mode and continuing on the branch line to Kruth as far as Thann.

The vehicles themselves are remarkable, as they need to be equipped for both streetcar and heavy rail operations, and each has its own requirements: lighting, horns, power supply, safety features... Mulhouse's vehicles are Siemens Avanto S70s, built in 2009-2010, and operated by SNCF as class U 25500. Similar units were introduced near Paris as early as 2005.

"Stick an aircraft engine in it" part 2b - the TGV

"Wait, the TGV's electric, right?", I hear you say. You're not wrong: all TGVs in commercial service since 1981 have been electric. But this is the 1972 prototype TGV, and back then, those initials stood for Turbotrain à Grande Vitesse, continuing the development cycle of trains with helicopter engines that had already been introduced on intercity services with the RTG.

This prototype would set the standard of what French high speed rail would become: articulated units of carriages between two power cars, and the distinctive, iconic orange livery I wish they would have kept around in some capacity. The train regularly ran over 300 km/h, peaking at 318 km/h in Southwestern France in December 1972. The difference, of course, is that TGV 001 was equipped with four helicopter-derived gas turbines, two in each power car. As the oil crises hit before the production TGV was properly defined, SNCF were able to redesign the project around electric power in time for the 1980s.

After 15 years of service as a test mule, the train was due to be scrapped, but fortunately the two power cars avoided that fate. Their interiors were gutted, but the cars were saved and put on display as monuments to their builders, Alsthom, at Belfort and Bischheim (North suburb of Strasbourg). UNfortunately, they've been put by the motorway of all places, at both sites, so visiting them isn't very pleasant. At least at Bischheim, there is a footpath on the bridge over the motorway and railway yard, so it's possible to take one's time and get some decent views of the machine that started it all.

The tri-national S-Bahn of Basel

Due to its location, Basel attracts people from three countries, and the rail network reflects that. On top of lines within Switzerland, one line arrives from France at Basel Central station, and several arrive from Germany at the Badischer Bahnhof on the North side of the Rhine. My trip to Augst via Basel and Wyhlen was a chance to ride on this suburban network of three companies in three countries.

Starting after lunch with the Hochrheinbahn which runs from Basel Bad., along the Northern side of the Rhine in Germany. This is the only line out of Basel that isn't electrified, so Baureihe 641 Diesel railcars run the route. We have this type of railcar in France too, it was designed as a response to a joint French-German tender for regional trains. Designed by De Dietrich and Linke-Hofmann-Busch, which were both bought by Alstom shortly after, it is the first example of what would become the Coradia platform.

On the Swiss side, the S-Bahn sees RABe 521 commuter trains run between Basel Central and Frick. This type of train is made by the Swiss company Stadler and is marketed as... the FLIRT. Stadler does this a lot, they also have the KISS and SMILE platforms, and each is the result of a convoluted acronym in German, though this one translated very nicely into English: Fast Light Intercity and Regional Train.

Finally, the French line of the S-Bahn goes out as far as Mulhouse, and is currently operated by electric AGC (Automotrice Grande Capacité - high-capacity unit) regional trains built by Bombardier (also since bought out by Alstom). 200 km/h express trains from Strasbourg also reach Basel Central, with the push-pull sets we already presented. The line from Mulhouse to Basel Central is electrified with French voltage (25 kV 50 Hz AC), which is different to the rest of the Swiss network (15 kV 16.7 Hz AC), hence the SNCF can run their trains into Basel with few adaptations (mainly comms).

And that's it for my tri-national tri-trip over the April-May break! Back to some older material next, it's time to look at Japan again.

200 km/h push-pull trains

While Germany has recent double-deck train carriages, the Dostos shown previously being built in the 2000s, and updated versions still being produced, France made its last carriages in the 1980s, including Corail cars for inter-city services. But their use was curtailed by the development of the high-speed network.

Some sets were given push-pull ability, with a driving cab at one end that can control the locomotive at the other - the lead car above being a renovated B5uxh: second-class seating, 5 compartments, air-conditioned, driving cab, disabled access. These have found a new lease of life in regional transport, especially in the East, as the straight and flat Alsace line from Strasbourg to Basel allows these 200 km/h-capable carriages to stretch their legs. The "TER 200" puts Strasbourg only 80 minutes from Switzerland (wink-wink-nudge-nudge for a future trip).

The usual motors for these sets are BB 26000 "Sybic" locomotives built in the 1990s, powerful enough to get them to their top speed. While not at top speed in this setting, probably running at 100 km/h on the slower line to the Lorraine region, they still feel like very big trains when they go by.

Other push-pull trains exist in Alsace, with smaller locos and carriages rejoining the fleet for the planned Réseau Express Métropolitain Européen. However, most passengers trains everywhere in France now are covered by multiple units, especially since bi-mode units like the Régiolis shown below, have appeared. These are capable of running on electric power or with a Diesel engine, making them as flexible as can be.