The Paris–Lille railway is a 251-kilometre-long (156 mi) railway line, that connects the French capital, Paris, to the northern city of Lille. Branch lines offer connections to Belgium and Great Britain. Opened on 20 June 1846, it was one of the first railway lines in France.[2] The opening of the parallel LGV Nord high speed line in 1993 has decreased its importance for long-distance passenger traffic.

Paris–Lille railway
The railway near Douai
Overview
StatusOperational
OwnerRFF
LocaleFrance (Île-de-France, Hauts-de-France)
Termini
Service
SystemSNCF
Operator(s)SNCF
History
Opened1846-1859
Technical
Line length251 km (156 mi)
Number of tracksDouble track
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Electrification25 kV 50 Hz AC[1]
Route map

RER B and D from Châtelet–Les Halles
0.0
Paris - Nord
3.4
to Laon
4.2
Stade de France – Saint-Denis
6.1
Saint-Denis
6.5
Line to Pontoise
10.1
PierrefitteStains
10.2
from Grande Ceinture
12.1
GargesSarcelles
14.8
Villiers-le-BelGonesse
15.8
LGV Nord to Lille enlarge…
19.5
Goussainville
21.0
Les Noues
23.6
Louvres
29.7
SurvilliersFosses
33.2
La Borne Blanche
35.0
Orry-la-Ville-Coye
40.9
Chantilly-Gouvieux
46.0
River Oise
from Persan-Beaumont
from Beauvais
50.3
Creil
51.0
Line to Saint-Quentin
54.1
Laigneville
57.7
LiancourtRantigny
65.1
from Compiègne
65.1
Clermont-de-l'Oise
72.7
Avrechy
75.4
Saint-Remy-en-l'Eau
79.5
Saint-Just-en-Chaussée
87.4
Gannes
94.9
Breteuil-Embranchement
95.0
to Breteuil
104.2
La Faloise
111.1
Ailly-sur-Noye
116.5
Dommartin-Remiencourt
from Compiègne
122.0
Boves
126.0
Longueau
Line to Amiens and Boulogne
to Saint-Quentin and Laon
131.1
Lamotte-Brebière
136.1
Daours
139.7
Corbie
144.1
Heilly
146.8
MéricourtRibémont
149.0
Buire-sur-l'Ancre
155.1
Albert
168.5
Miraumont
from Bapaume
174.0
Achiet
178.1
Courcelles-le-Comte
183.1
Boisleux
187.9
LGV Nord to Paris enlarge…
190.9
from Saint-Pol-sur-Ternoise
192.1
Arras
192.6
Line to Dunkerque
199.6
LGV Nord to Lille enlarge…
200.8
Rœux
204.3
Biache-Saint-Vaast
207.4
Vitry-en-Artois
210.0
Brebières-Sud
212.0
Corbehem
to Cambrai
215.3
to Valenciennes
217.4
Douai
220.4
Pont-de-la-Deûle
224.2
Leforest
227.0
Ostricourt
to Lens
231.5
Libercourt
235.5
Phalempin
239.4
Seclin
243.0
WattigniesTemplemars
246.4
Ronchin
from Béthune
from Charleville-Mézières
LGV Nord from Paris, Brussels and London enlarge…
248.8
Line from Tournai
Line to Tourcoing
250.9
Lille-Flandres
Line to Calais enlarge…

Route

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The Paris–Lille railway begins at the Gare du Nord in Paris, running north for 6 km until Saint-Denis. From here, it climbs in northeastern direction at a constant 5 mm/km incline. Near Marly-la-Ville, it turns north and then northwest, and descends towards the river Oise. At Creil, the Oise is crossed. The line to Saint-Quentin and Brussels branches off at Creil.

The line leaves the Oise valley and continues north to the river Somme at Longueau near Amiens. Here the Longueau–Boulogne railway to the Gare d'Amiens and Boulogne-sur-Mer branches off to the west, and a line to Laon to the east. The line to Lille continues in northeastern direction, following the valley of the Somme until Corbie, and then the river Ancre until Miraumont, where the line turns north until it reaches Arras.

From Arras it follows the river Scarpe in eastern direction until Douai, where it turns northwest. After Ostricourt it turns north again, entering the agglomeration of Lille. After a total length of 251 km, it reaches its terminus Gare de Lille-Flandres.

Main stations

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The main stations on the Paris–Lille railway are:

History

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The idea of linking France to Belgium and Great Britain was studied by the French Government as early as 1833.[3] By November 1842, the northern French cities Lille and Valenciennes were already connected to the Belgian railway network.[2] In July 1844 a law was passed that determined the route of the new railway from Paris to Lille. Exploitation of the line from Paris to Lille and several branch lines was granted to the Compagnie des chemins de fer du Nord. Owners of the CF du Nord were Hottinger, Laffitte, Blount and Baron de Rothschild as president. The railway line as well as the Parisian station was inaugurated in June 1846.[3]

The line originally passed through the Oise valley, along Saint-Ouen-l'Aumône and Persan. This way a steep climb and descent between Saint-Denis and Creil could be avoided. The arrival of stronger engines prompted the CF du Nord to construct a 19 km shorter line between Saint-Denis and Creil over the plateau, passing along Chantilly. This new section was opened on 10 May 1859.[4]

Since the opening of the LGV Nord high speed line between Paris and Lille in 1993, most long-distance passenger traffic has shifted away from the classical Paris–Lille line. It remains an important railway for freight traffic and regional passenger traffic.

Services

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The Paris–Lille railway is used by the following passenger services:

  • TGV, Thalys and Eurostar on the section between Paris and Villiers-le-Bel - Gonesse, and on short stretches near Arras and Lille
  • TGV additionally on the section between Arras and Lille
  • Intercités from Paris to Boulogne on the section between Paris and Longueau, and Intercités from Paris to Cambrai and Maubeuge on the section between Paris and Creil
  • TER Hauts-de-France regional services on the whole line
  • Transilien regional services on the section between Paris and Saint-Denis
  • RER D Paris rapid transit on the section between Paris and Creil

References

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  1. ^ "RFF - Map of electrified railway lines" (PDF).
  2. ^ a b Direction Générale des Ponts et Chaussées et des Chemins de Fer (1869). Statistique centrale des chemins de fer. Chemins de fer français. Situation au 31 décembre 1869 (in French). Paris: Ministère des Travaux Publics. pp. 146–160.
  3. ^ a b Joanne, Adolphe (1859). Atlas historique et statistique des chemins de fer français (in French). Paris: L. Hachette. pp. 21–22.
  4. ^ Wolters, C. (1860). Histoire financière des chemins de fer français et étrangers (in French). Paris: Napoléon Chaix. p. 58.
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