Tramway de Bordeaux

The Bordeaux tramway network (French: "Tramway de Bordeaux") consists of three lines serving the city of Bordeaux in southwestern France. The first line was opened on 21 December 2003; further extensions have increased the route length to convert|43.3|km. The system is notable for using a ground-level power supply of the Alimentation par Sol (APS) system in the city centre. It is operated by Tram et Bus de la CUB (TBC).

History

Old network

The first tramway line of Bordeaux, with cars towed by horses, dates back to 1880. In 1946 the public transportation system in Bordeaux had 38 tram lines with a total length of 200 km, carrying 160,000 passengers per day. A rudimentary system of ground-level power supply was used on some stretches with mixed success. As in other French cities at the time the mayor, Jacques Chaban-Delmas (first elected in 1947), embraced anti-tram arguments and decided to terminate the operation of the tramway. He found the tramway to be old-fashioned compared to the bus and its attachment to set tracks on the ground hindered the increasing flow of cars. The lines were closed one after the other. In 1958 the last line of tramway was terminated.

Other

By the 1970s the failure of the "all car" transport policy had become obvious, but Chaban was not prepared to backtrack. A grandiose automatic light underground railway (VAL) scheme was promoted; it even received the backing of a majority of the city's councillors, but fell victim in the end not just to the fierce opposition of the local transport users' association TRANSCUB but to the hard reality of the fine sandy nature of the city's soil. The VAL idea was dropped. Chaban remained.

Bordeaux had to wait until 1995 and the election of Alain Juppé as mayor – as well as the total strangulation of the city by its transport problems – before the situation was tackled. Following two years of studies, the Bordeaux Urban Community adopted the tramway plan in 1997. Recognized by the central government in 2000 as a Public Interest Project, the scheme got under way and by 21 December 2003 was carrying passengers on three routes, one of which was extended on 25 September 2005, with further extensions opened in 2007 and 2008.

The system today

A particular feature of the new Bordeaux tram network is its ground-level power supply system which is used in the city centre to avoid overhead wires spoiling the view of buildings. This was the source of many difficulties and breakdowns when first introduced. Improvements since then, however, have increased reliability and the network is now one of Bordeaux's principal plus points, valued not just for enabling the people of the city to get about easily but also for its contribution to the aesthetics of the city and its quality of life. The new trams are an essential part of Bordeaux's current tourist redynamization strategy. The three lines were extended in 2007 and 2008 to reach several housing estates as well as the suburb of Mérignac. The whole system is under video surveillance, with a camera installed inside each vehicle.

The network

As of December 2007, the network has a total route length of convert|43.3|km with 84 stops.

The first line (Line A) was opened on 21 December 2003 in the presence of President Jacques Chirac, and the mayor of Bordeaux, Alain Juppé. It ran between Mériadeck and Lormont/Cenon. It was extended on 26 September 2005 to new termini at the Pellegrin Hospital and Saint-Augustin. Further extensions opened in 2007; from Cenon to Floriac on 27 February 2007; and from Saint-Augustin to Mérignac Centre on 21 June 2007. As of August 2007 a new extension from Lormont Lauriers to Carbon Blanc is under construction.

Line C was the next to open: on 24 April 2004, following delays. The final northern section to Les Aubiers was opened in 2008.

Line B was partially opened on 15 May 2004 and throughout on 3 July 2004. 29 May 2007 saw the opening of the first phase of its 2007 extension of when it began to serve Pessac Centre at its western end. On 23 July 2007 a further extension of the line from its previous terminus at Quinconces, along the left bank of the Garonne, to a station at Bassins à Flot opened. The current final planned northern terminus of the line is at Cité Claveau, near to the Pont d'Aquitaine on the Bordeaux ring road.

The current routes of the three lines are:

* A - Mérignac Centre <-> Lormont Lauriers / Floriac Dravemont (17 km)
* B - Bassins à Flot <-> Pessac Centre (via the campus) (10.6 km)
* C - Les Aubiers <-> Terres Neuves (8,1 km)

Line A will be extended from Lormont to Carbon Blanc.

Line C will be extended from Bègles southwards.

The overall system sees some 300,000 passenger journeys daily, 165,000 on the Tram :

* 70,000 using Line A
* 70,000 using Line B
* 25,000 using Line C

On average, 45% of journeys on the combined bus and tram network of the TBC are by tram.

Technical aspects

Trams

As of June 2008 the fleet is composed of 74 type 300 [Revue "Connaissances du Rail" : Trams de France 2007] Citadis trams constructed by Alstom:
* 62 Citadis 402 — length: 43.9m, width: 2.4m, weight: 54.9 tons. 7 segments with 4 bogies and 3 motors and 720kW power. These trams can transport from 230 (at 4 passengers per m²) to 345 (at 6 passengers per m²) with 70 sitting. These trams are used on lines A and B.
* 12 Citadis 302 — length: 32.8m, width: 2.4m, weight: 41.3 tons. 5 segments with 3 bogies and 2 motors and 480kW power. These trams transport a maximum of 265 passengers with 48 seated. These trams are used on Line C.

All trams are air conditioned and have a low floor. The rails are standard gauge (1,435 mm) and power is 750V DC. The maximum speed is 60km/h with an acceleration of 1.15 m/s². The deceleration obtained from emergency braking is 2.85 m / s².

Electric power / Ground-level power supply

By demand of the CUB part of the system uses ground-level power supply (APS).

References

See also

* Tram et Bus de la CUB
* Lines A, B, and C

External links

* [http://www.infotbc.com/ Official site of the Bordeaux bus and tramway network] (in French)
* [http://www.transcub.com/ Official site of the users' group TRANSCUB] (in French)