Reims tramway (french: Tramway de Reims) is a

tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...

system in the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

city of

Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded b ...

, which opened in April 2011. It travels north to south, through the city, along of route.

Operation and routes

The system has 24 stops, with a further two planned for the future. Two services run on the system: * A This , 21 station service runs from the ''Neuchâtel'' terminus in the northern Orgeval neighbourhood, to the southern terminus of ''Hôpital Debré,'' passing through the city centre, past the central railway station and the

Reims Cathedral , image = Reims Kathedrale.jpg , imagealt = Facade, looking northeast , caption = Façade of the cathedral, looking northeast , pushpin map = France , pushpin map alt = Location within France , ...

. The trams on this service run approximately every five to six minutes. * B : This , 22 station service follows nearly the same route as A, running from the ''Neuchâtel'' terminus, through the city centre. A short distance before the terminus of A, it turns 90 degrees and speeds up to reach the Champagne-Ardenne TGV station at

Bezannes Bezannes () is a commune of the Marne department in northeastern France, near the city of Reims. The Gare de Champagne-Ardenne TGV Champagne-Ardenne TGV station ( French: ''Gare de Champagne-Ardenne TGV'') is a railway station located in Bezan ...

. The trams on this service run approximately every 22 minutes.

Rolling stock

The 18 trams used on the line are

Alstom Citadis The Alstom Citadis is a family of low-floor trams and light rail vehicles built by Alstom. , over 2,300 Citadis trams have been sold and 1,800 tramways are in revenue service throughout the world, with operations in all six inhabited continen ...

302. They consist of five body sections and have capacity for 205 passengers, with 56 seated. The line uses the APS third rail system for 1.9 km around

, minimising visual intrusion in the historic city centre. This APS system, pioneered in

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...

, allows the trams to be powered by a ground level third rail instead of overhead power lines. The vehicle design evokes a

Champagne flute A champagne glass is stemware designed for champagne and other sparkling wines. The two most common forms are the flute and coupe, both stemmed; holding the glass by the stem prevents warming the drink. Champagne can also be drunk from a normal ...

, as Reims is the centre of the Champagne region. The livery is the work of famous designer

Ruedi Baur Rudolph or Rudolf (french: Rodolphe, Italian, Portuguese and es, Rodolfo) or Rodolphe is a male first name, and, less commonly, a surname. It is an ancient Germanic name deriving from two stems: ''Hrōþi'', ''Hruod'', ''Hróðr'' or ''Hrōð'' ...

and is based around the concept of colours. Each vehicle has its own pastel colour from a total selection of eight. The insides of the vehicles are coloured the same as the outsides.

History

Initial studies into the potential of a tramway began in 2003, as a consequence of an overcrowded bus network and the impacts this was having on the historic centre of

. In July 2006, financing, construction and management of the future line was delegated to a private concessionary consortium, called MARS (''Mobility in the Agglomeration of ReimS''). This €1.4 billion public private partnership was unique in France at the time. This consortium is composed of the vehicles' builder ''

Alstom Alstom SA is a French multinational corporation, multinational rolling stock manufacturer operating worldwide in rail transport markets, active in the fields of passenger transportation, signalling, and locomotives, with products including the A ...

'', the network operator ''

Transdev Transdev, formerly Veolia Transdev, is a French-based international private-sector company which operates public transport. It has operations in 17 countries and territories as of November 2020. History The group was formed by the merger of ...

'', five roadwork enterprises and three

pension fund A pension fund, also known as a superannuation fund in some countries, is any plan, fund, or scheme which provides retirement income. Pension funds typically have large amounts of money to invest and are the major investors in listed and priva ...

s. Construction of the tramway began in May 2008, with the first tram arriving in March 2010, which allowed for testing and commissioning of the line in September 2010. The line opened on 16 April 2011, with a cost of €305m.

Network map

References

Bibliography

* Local papers: ''Ville de Reims Information'' (official magazine of Ville de Reims), ''Reims Métropole Magazine'' (official magazine of the agglomeration),
L'Hebdo du Vendredi
' (free private weekly),
L'Union
' (private daily) * Documents of the public inquest * ''Connaissance du Rail'' (bimonthly specialized magazine), special tramways number of October - November 2007 * ''Plus d'un siècle de transports en commun à Reims'', Marcel Chenu & Michel Jailliard, 1990,

External links

*
MARS's website
{{coord missing, France Buildings and structures in Reims

Tramway