Chemin de Fer de l'Ouest

The Compagnie des chemins de fer de l'Ouest (CF de l'Ouest), often referred to simply as ''L'Ouest'' or ''Ouest'', was an early French railway company which operated from the years 1855 through 1909.

History

Birth of the company

The Compagnie de l'Ouest was created in 1855 by the merger of various small railway companies active in the western outskirts of Paris, in Normandy and in Brittany. These were:
*Paris à Saint-Germain
*Paris à Rouen
*Rouen au Havre
*Dieppe, Seine-Maritime, Dieppe à Fécamp
*Paris à Caen et à Cherbourg-Octeville, Cherbourg
*the old Ouest (two lines from Paris to Versailles (city), Versailles and Paris–Rennes)

Paris à Saint-Germain

The Ouest's oldest line (still open to this day) is the line from Paris to Le Vésinet – Le Pecq (Paris RER), Le Pecq, built by Péreire brothers, Émile Péreire's ''Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Saint-Germain'' and inaugurated on 24 August 1837 by Maria Amalia of Naples and Sicily, Marie-Amélie, wife of King Louis-Philippe. The line was long and the trip took 30 minutes. Initially greeted with fear and lack of interest, the railway was a success that paved the way for other new railways, for instance to Rouen. In 1847, the line to Le Pecq was extended to Gare RER de Saint Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye. The section between Saint-Germain-en-Laye and Gare de Nanterre – Université, Nanterre – Université is now part of the Réseau Express Régional, RER line A. The section between Gare Saint-Lazare, Paris Saint-Lazare and Nanterre is part of the main lines to Rouen and Caen.

The old Ouest

While the line to Saint-Germain-en-Laye was being built, a line to Versailles (city), Versailles, another popular Sunday destination, was projected. Two lines were built, one from Gare Saint-Lazare to the terminus Gare de Versailles-Rive-Droite, Versailles-Rive-Droite, the other from Gare Montparnasse (''Barrière du Maine'') to the terminus Gare de Versailles-Rive-Gauche, Versailles-Rive-Gauche. James Mayer de Rothschild in conjunction with the Chemin de Fer de Versailles-rive-Droite, created in 1837, were given the concession to operate the lines. The line to Versailles-Rive-Droite, opened on 4 August 1839 and still in use today as Transilien Paris – Saint-Lazare, Transilien line L, is long, branching off the line to Saint-Germain at Asnières-sur-Seine. The line to Versailles-Rive-Gauche is also still in use today. The part between Montparnasse and Viroflay is used by trains from Paris to Chartres and Brittany as well as Transilien Paris – Montparnasse, Transilien line N. The part between Viroflay and Versailles is used by RER C local trains.

Paris à Rouen

Two lines to Rouen in Normandy were projected: one passing through La Garenne-Colombes and following the left Seine bank from Poissy, the other passing through Pontoise and following the high plateaux on the right Seine bank. Due to the lack of confidence in the second project, the first one was granted and the concession given to Charles Laffitte and Edouard Blount. Construction began in 1841 under the orders of engineer Joseph Locke and with the help of British workers. Inauguration of the line was on 9 May 1843. It was an immediate success, so much so that issues with the Chemin de Fer de Saint-Germain with platform allocation at Gare Saint-Lazare occurred.

Expansion

The Second French Empire, Imperial Government imposed the construction of several lines:
* Argentan – Granville, Manche, Granville
* Rennes – Brest, France, Brest
* Rennes – Saint-Malo
* Rennes – Redon
* Le Mans – Angers
* Serquigny – Rouen
* Gare de Lisieux, Lisieux – Honfleur
* Mézidon-Canon – Le Mans

The Government also imposed several secondary lines.

The network was rapidly expanded:

To better use the Rive-Droite line, a long branch was built from Saint-Cloud to Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche at the cost of the French State. The line was declared of public utility in 1880 and the Chemins de fer de l'Ouest opened the line to l'Étang-la-Ville in 1884. Passenger services were extended to Saint-Germain-en-Laye–Grande-Ceinture station, Saint-Germain Grande-Ceinture in 1889, services were then reported back to Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche in 1894 when passenger services on the Grande Ceinture line, Chemin de fer de Grande Ceinture were stopped.

A second line from Saint-Lazare to Mantes-la-Jolie was opened in 1892, following the right Seine bank. The new line started at Argenteuil, and passed Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, Triel-sur-Seine, Triel and Meulan-en-Yvelines, Meulan.History of Triel
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Because of the company's bad financial situation due to the region it served (agricultural for the most part), the law of 13 July 1908 saw the integration of the Companie des Chemins de fer de l'Ouest into the Chemins de fer de l'État on 1 January 1909.

Accidents

* On a Sunday in May 1842, one of the worst accidents in France, French railway history happened near Meudon: 164 victims; the 55 dead were burnt alive (see Versailles rail accident, Versailles train crash). After this incident the company no longer locked doors on passenger coaches.
* Montparnasse derailment: On 22 October 1895 an express train originating from Granville traversed Gare Montparnasse, Montparnasse station, ploughed into the Buffer stop, buffers, wrecked the station building's front wall and dropped to the ground on the street below. The only fatality was the wife of a newspaper vendor, filling in for her husband (who had gone to get the evening newspapers), who was killed by falling masonry from the wall.
* In 1881 there were 2064 railway related accidents: 185 derailings, 190 collisions, 692 accidents on the line. 512 passengers died in these accidents, 1/10 of those who died in accidents on stagecoaches.
* Lists of rail accidents

Paris stations

L'Ouest built several stations within Paris; the two main terminals Gare Saint-Lazare, St Lazare and Gare Montparnasse, Montparnasse as well as Gare de Pont Cardinet, Pont Cardinet at the beginning of the line to Auteuil-Neuilly-Passy, Auteuil.

In 1851 the Ouest's Paris terminus, the Gare Saint-Lazare, was enlarged to comprise six groups for each main destination served:
* Group I & II: Versailles (city), Versailles
* Group III: Auteuil-Neuilly-Passy, Auteuil
* Group IV: Argenteuil
* Group V: Saint-Germain-en-Laye
* Group VI: Rouen, Le Havre & Dieppe, Seine-Maritime, Dieppe (the line to Caen served by this group was not opened until 1855)

La Ligne d'Auteuil

Line openings

Architecture

A sense of identity

As with many other railway companies, the Ouest adopted its own architectural style. Stations in large cities such as Le Havre, Gare Principale Lisieux, Lisieux, Deauville and Gare Saint-Lazare, Paris are unique. More modest halts were graced with 'type' building, which are called 'type Ouest', the best-preserved examples can be found in Dives-sur-Mer and Houlgate.
According to the size of the town or village close to the proposed site for the station, a station of a certain size was built. There are three generic types of station buildings; the BV3, BV5 and BV7. BV stands for Bâtiment Voyageur (station building) and the number, the number of doors accessible. The larger the town, the larger the station building.

As well as stations, infrastructure was also in mind when saving money so the Ouest created a level crossing guard house template (see below).

Station photos

Image:Gare-st-lazare-2.jpg, Paris St Lazare station
Image:Gare_de_Rouen.jpg, Rouen Rue Verte station
Image:Gare_de_Caen.jpg, Caen station
Image:Gare de Blonville-Bénèrville.jpg, Blonville-Bénèrville station
Image:Gare de Houlgate small.jpg, Houlgate station
Image:Gare de Pont L'Evèque.jpg, Pont L'Evèque station
Image:DeauvilleTrouvilleGare.JPG, Trouville-Deauville station
Image:Gare de Villers-sur-Mer.jpg, Villers-sur-Mer station
Image:Garde Barrière Ouest.jpg, A typical Ouest level crossing guard house

Locomotives

Heilmann locomotives

In 1893, built a Heilmann locomotive, steam-electric locomotive of Do Do wheel arrangement, which was trialled on the CF de l'Ouest. Named ''La Fusée Electrique'' ( en, The Electric Rocket), it was successful enough that two larger locomotives were constructed in 1897. These were numbered 8001 and 8002. Although considered successful, the design was not proceeded with and all three locomotives were dismantled.

References

Sources

* ''Histoire du réseau ferroviaire français'', 1996, Editions de l'Ormet / Imprimerie Bayeusienne Graphique.
* ''Le tour du Calvados en 80 cartes'', 1996, Direction Départementale de l'Equipement (Calvados).
* ''Paris et l'Île de France – Tome 1: Les réseaux Est, Nord et Saint-Lazare'', 2002, Le Train. ISSN 1267-5008
* ''Electrification des lignes Paris-Caen-Cherbourg et Paris-Trouville-Deauville'', 1996, Conseil Régional de Basse Normandie (Rémy Desquesnes).

External links

*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chemins De Fer De L'ouest
Transport in Normandy
Railway companies of France
Railway companies established in 1855
1855 establishments in France
Railway companies disestablished in 1909
1909 mergers and acquisitions
1909 disestablishments in France