Rhônexpress () is an express
tram-train
A tram-train or dual-system tram is a type of light rail vehicle that both meets the standards of a light rail system, and also national mainline standards. Tramcars are adapted to be capable of running on streets like an urban tramway but a ...
service which links
Lyon
Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...
, France, with its main airport,
Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport, and the
TGV
The TGV (; , , 'high-speed train') is France's intercity high-speed rail service. With commercial operating speeds of up to on the newer lines, the TGV was conceived at the same period as other technological projects such as the Ariane 1 rocke ...
railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
located there. At its opening in 2010, it became one of the most expensive airport-to-city lines in Europe per kilometre.
The route is long, and served by six tram-train sets, built by Swiss manufacturer
Stadler Rail
Stadler Rail AG is a Swiss manufacturer of railway rolling stock, with an original emphasis on regional train multiple units and trams, but moving also into Rapid transit, mass rapid transit, High-speed rail, high speed, Inter-city rail, interci ...
. The route from the airport to the city's business center at
Part-Dieu Villette (
Lyon-Part-Dieu railway station) by way of Vaulx-en-Velin – La Soie (for transfer to
Metro Line A) and Meyzieu takes roughly half an hour. Services run every 15–30 minutes.
The project included building of new tracks, while the remainder of the route runs along the existing T3 tram line, on which passing tracks were built in some stations to allow express service. The service is independently run and is not a part of the
TCL
TCL or Tcl or TCLs may refer to:
Business
* TCL Technology, a Chinese consumer electronics and appliance company
** TCL Electronics, a subsidiary of TCL Technology
* Texas Collegiate League, a collegiate baseball league
* Trade Centre Limited ...
system, although it appears on TCL maps. The
Conseil général of the
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...
franchised the operation of this line for 30 years to Rhônexpress, a consortium including
Vinci SA
Vinci (; corporately styled VINCI) is a French concessions and construction company founded in 1899 as Société Générale d'Entreprises. Its head office is in Nanterre, in the western suburbs of Paris. Vinci is listed on Euronext's Paris st ...
(28.2%),
Veolia Transport
Veolia Transport (formerly Connex and CGEA Transport) was the international transport services division of the French-based multinational company Veolia until the 2011 merger that gave rise to Veolia Transdev, later renamed Transdev. Veolia Tr ...
(28.2%),
Vossloh Infrastructure Service (4.2%),
Cegelec Centre Est (2.8%) and the
Caisse des dépôts et consignations. It opened on 9 August 2010.
Background and construction
During February 2001, the General Council of the Rhone and SYTRAL, the urban transport authority for Lyon metropolitan area, announced their intentions to introduce a double-deck streetcar service that would run between Lyon Part-Dieu, Meyzieu ZI and Lyon Saint Exupery.
Upon completion, it would become the only public transportation system between Lyon and Saint-Exupéry.
SYTRAL oversaw the construction of the initial line, commonly referred to as the ''T3 Links'', which ran between Lyon Part-Dieu and Meyzieu ZI; its commissioning in December 2006 represented a major milestone for the project.
During January 2007, a concession contract covering the second line of the RhônExpress was signed by both the General Council Chairman and RhônExpress consortium, the latter being responsible for the full implementation of the project, including design, financing, construction, and maintenance activities.
This new link between downtown Lyon and its airport was developed under a
public-private partnership (PPP). Its estimated cost was stated to be €120m; it was financed by the consortium through various means, €40m was received through several
grants, another €62m came through borrowing by RhônExpress, while the remainder was contributed by its shareholders; all debt is to be repaid with the support of the Department, which provides an annual retainer to the consortium.
During July 2008, the tramway was declared to be a public utility; construction work commenced three months later.
Both design and construction were managed by a variety of companies, including VINCI, Eurovia Railway Works (ETF), Cegelec Centre Est, Campenon Bernard Management, South East EJL and Roiret Transport. The completed line is also managed by a consortium, headed by VINCI, which was awarded the concession to operate it for a fixed period of 30 years.
During 2009, much of the tramway's infrastructure was built, delivery of the rolling stock also took place around this timeframe.
The line is electrified; to provide this electrification along the new section of line, a pair of
substations were built to power the newly installed overhead catenary wire. This is energised at 750V DC, suitable for operating the tram-trains at speeds of up to .
The line's support infrastructure includes a dedicated operations centre, comprising offices and maintenance facilities, along with storage sidings for the rolling stock, a sand replenishment station and vehicle cleaning facilities. Both day-to-day operations of the tramway and all maintenance activities associated with it are responsibilities of the consortium.
Operations
Trial operations of the new line occurred during February 2010 while commercial operations started in August of that year. Since launch, the trams have been typically run at a 15-minute interval at peak hours, which fall between 6am and 9pm. A reduced service level runs every 30 minutes between 5am and 6am, as well as between 9pm and midnight.
The consortium has reportedly been allocated funds to acquire additional tram-trains in the future. In anticipation of the future growth in passenger numbers, all of the stations were constructed to accommodate double trains if required.
By early 2019, the Rhônexpress had reportedly carried in excess of 10 million passengers since its inauguration nine years prior; during 2018 alone, it was recorded that over 1.5 million passengers had used the line, an 8.6 percent increase from the previous year.
However, the system has been criticised for its high prices, as well as for being awarded contractual rights for a
monopoly
A monopoly (from Greek language, Greek and ) is a market in which one person or company is the only supplier of a particular good or service. A monopoly is characterized by a lack of economic Competition (economics), competition to produce ...
along its route, the latter having been subject to legal challenges.
During the 2010s, multiple petitions have been organised, calling for a reduction in the fares on the Rhônexpress. During April 2019, the Lyon Metropole commenced negotiations with the consortium, intending to secure a decrease in fares; David Kimelfeld, President of the Lyon Metropole, declared that: "We can’t sit back and let it continue like this". Reportedly, if a compromise cannot be found, the existing agreement that the Rhônexpress is operated under may be terminated.
Route and stations
Rhônexpress uses the
line T3 infrastructure built by SYTRAL from Lyon to
Meyzieu (a hub for commuters with a large surface parking lot available). From there, new tracks were built specifically for Rhônexpress all the way to
Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport. The route has a total length of , of which has been recently built, running largely between the Meyzieu ZI and the Lyon-Saint Exupery stations.
There are four stations along the line:
*
Part-Dieu (Metro Line B)
*
Vaulx-en-Velin
Vaulx-en-Velin () is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, eastern France. It is the third-largest suburb of the city of Lyon, and is located to its northeast, on the river Rhône.
History
The rivers, including the Rhône, ...
(Metro Line A)
*
Meyzieu Z.I.
*
Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport
Of these four stations, Vaulx-en-Velin and Meyzieu ZI are intermediate stations.
All stations have been designed with accessibility in mind, either being directly accessible from the ground level or via provided
elevator
An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...
s. Further accessibility measures included the presence of
braille
Braille ( , ) is a Tactile alphabet, tactile writing system used by blindness, blind or visually impaired people. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille displays that connect to computers and smartphone device ...
signage indicating levels and locations. The information terminals that provide live train schedules include periodic audio announcements for passenger convenience.
Rolling stock
The six
Tango 12 tram-train sets were built by Stadler Rail at its factory in Wilhelmsruh,
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
. Rolling stock was chosen after a tender, taking into account the technical criteria (speed up to ), durability, security and compatibility with the common use of the T3 line infrastructure, economics (capacity adapted to the traffic and prospects for their development) as well as comfort and aesthetics. The interior and exterior designs of the Stadler Tango were created by
RCP Design Global, who had already designed the tramways in
Le Mans
Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...
,
Angers
Angers (, , ;) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Duchy of Anjou, Anjou until the French Revolution. The i ...
and
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
.
All doors are automatically operated, and are designed to readily allow the movement of
wheelchair
A wheelchair is a mobilized form of chair using two or more wheels, a footrest, and an armrest usually cushioned. It is used when walking is difficult or impossible to do due to illnesses, injury, disabilities, or age-related health conditio ...
s and
pushchairs.
Each tram-train is provisioned with two dedicated areas that provide greater stability for wheelchair users during travel; in addition to grab bars, seat belts are also provided for the purpose of restraining the chair.
See also
*
Lyon tramway
The Lyon tramway () comprises eight lines, seven lines operated by Transports en commun lyonnais, TCL and one by Rhônexpress, in the city of Lyon, France. The original tramway network in Lyon was developed in 1879; the modern network started op ...
*
Lyon metro
*
Trams in France
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhonexpress
Rapid transit in Lyon
Railway services introduced in 2010