Paris Métro

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Métro

Paris public transport Métro lines line 1 line 7bis line 2 line 8 line 3 line 9 line 3bis line 10 line 4 line 11 line 5 line 12 line 6 line 13 line 7 line 14 RER lines line A line D line B line E line C Suburban rail (Transilien) Saint-Lazare Nord La Défense Est Montparnasse Lyon Airport shuttles CDGVAL Orlyval Bus Bus (RATP) Noctilien   Bus (Optile)   Tramway Tramway T1 Tramway T2 Tramway T3 Tramway T4

Line 5's crossing of the Seine on the Austerlitz viaduct.

The Paris Métro (French: Métro de Paris) is the rapid transit system in Paris, France. It includes 16 lines, primarily underground, with a total route length of 213 km (133 miles). Lines are identified by numbers from 1 to 14, with two minor lines, 3bis and 7bis, which were formerly part of their parent line and only later became independent. The system, which has become one of the symbols of Paris, is notable for the density of its network in central Paris, and for its homogeneous architectural style, influenced by Art Nouveau. The system was expanded later by an additional express network known as the RER to reach further suburbs.

The initial line was inaugurated in 1900, during the Exposition Universelle world's fair. The system was expanded quickly to the outbreak of the First World War, and the core of the Métro network was complete by the 1920s. The first extensions across the municipal boundary into adjacent suburbs were built during the 1930s. Line 11 was also created during this period. After World War II, the network, reaching saturation, strongly modernized with newer trains allowing a higher trafic. Technical decisions dating to the design of the original network, such as short distances between stations, limit prospects for expansion. The opted solution was to create a second level of network, the RER, developed from the 1960s. At the end of the 20th century, the Paris Métro inaugurated the fully automated Line 14, intended to relieve RER Line A.

Today, the Métro transports approximately 4.5 million passengers per day (1.365 billion for the year 2005). It serves 297 stations, of which 62 provide connections with other lines. The Métro-RER station Châtelet-Les Halles is the biggest station of the network and also the world's largest subway station.^[1].

The company which originally operated most of the network was known as Compagnie du chemin de fer métropolitain de Paris (Paris Metropolitan Railway Company) or CMP, shortened to "Métropolitain". Within its first years, that name was quickly abbreviated to Métro. The Métro today is operated by the Régie autonome des transports parisiens (RATP), a public transport authority that also operates part of the RER network, bus services and light rail lines.

[edit] General use

[edit] Opening hours

Trains run from approximately 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. every day of the year on every station of the network. The last train, often called the "balai" (broom) because it 'sweeps' up remaining passengers, arrives at the terminal station at 1:15 a.m. Since December 2006, the Metro stays open one hour later on Saturday nights and nights before a holiday, thus ending service at 2:15 a.m. As of December 2007, the Metro will also stay open an hour later on Friday nights.

During special events, such as the New Year's Eve, the Fête de la Musique (music day) or Nuit Blanche (white night), the network is partially opened during the whole night. These exceptional openings affect only main stations of main lines on manual lines (1, 2, 4, 6), some stations on RER lines, and on all stations of automatic lines (currently line 14, and line 1 by 2010).'

[edit] Network passes

Paris standard single trip ticket "t".

The standard pass is the single trip ticket "t" which is valid for unlimited time and transfers in the whole Métro network and in zone 1 of the RER network as far as you don't leave the network. It can be bought either as a single unit at a cost of €1.50, or as a pack of ten, a carnet, costing €11.50.

Other passes allow unlimited use of the public transit system within a given period of time:

• weekly or monthly pass (carte orange), one-day pass (Mobilis)
• yearly pass (intégrale, imagine R for students)
• one-day, two-day, three-day or five-day pass for occasional visitors (Paris Visite)

Finally, the Navigo pass is a means of payment for public transportation introduced in 2001 which is progressively replacing the carte orange. It consists of a personal pass which can be reloaded monthly or weekly. Quite different from other passes, Navigo is not a magnetic ticket, but an RFID based contactless smart card.

[edit] Use of passes

Turnstiles mark the entrance to the network. With regular passes, users should insert their ticket in the designated slot and take it back afterwards. The ticket should be kept during the whole trip, and may be checked by an inspector at any time. For the Navigo pass, on the other hand, bringing it close to the turnstile's sensor is enough. There is no need to insert any ticket. Some users directly bring their bag close to the sensor without even feeling the need to take their Navigo pass out of it.

[edit] Technical summary

[edit] Overview

The Métro network mapped to a geographically accurate scale

The Métro network has 223 km (133 miles) of track and 298 stations (62 offering connection between lines)^[2]. These figures do not include the RER network. The average distance between stations is approximately 562 m (1845 feet). All trains stop at all stations ^[3]. Each line has dedicated platforms, even at interchange (transfer) stations (i.e., lines do not share platforms). This feature also applies to RER lines.

In 2004, the annual traffic on Paris Métro lines totalled 1,336,000,000 passengers^[4]. The average speed of trains is 35 km/h while the maximum speed for all segments is 70 km/h (80 km/h on line 14), due to the underground restrictions. Circulation is on the right. The track gauge is 1.435 meters (standard gauge, like the French main lines) — but trains are narrower than on the main lines, so Métro cars could run on regular tracks but not vice versa. Train length varies from line to line: three to six cars, depending on passenger volume. All trains on a given line always have the same number of cars. Power is collected from a third rail, 750 V DC, except on the rubber-tired metro routes where the 750 V DC power is collected from the guide bars. Lines 1, 4, 6, 11, and 14 are rubber-tired. Line 14 is driverless (fully automatic).

The earliest lines (the ones that were dug out by hand) follow the roads above them. For instance, Line 1 follows the Champs Élysées in a perfectly straight line. This was due to the fact that because of poor construction techniques, the construction had to follow the roads; otherwise the workers would encounter cellars. This also explains why some stations (Commerce on line 8 and Liège on line 13) have platforms that do not align; the street above is too narrow.

[edit] Rolling stock

Typical MP 59 train on line 4.

The Paris Métro rolling stock is mainly divided in two categories, one consisting of steel-wheel trains and the other of rubber-tyred trains. Steel-wheel rolling stocks are named "MF" (standing for French matériel fer), and rubber-tyred rolling stocks are named "MP" (standing for French matériel pneu). The different versions of both kind are specified by the year of their design (not the year of their first use).

Summary of current rolling stock:

• Rubber-tyred
  • MP 59: lines 4 and 11
  • MP 73: line 6
  • MP 89: lines 1 (manually driven) and 14 (automatically driven)
  • MP 05: planned to serve on line 1 by 2010 once the line is fully automated.

• Steel-wheel
  • MF 67: lines 2, 3, 5, 9, 10, 12 and as a shortened three-car version on 3bis
  • MF 77: lines 7, 8 and 13
  • MF 88: line 7bis
  • MF 2000: planned to serve on lines 2, 5 and 9 by 2007.

[edit] The lines

[edit] Paris Métro lines

Paris Métro lines

Line name		Opened	Last extension	Stations served	Length	Average interstation	Journeys made (per annum)	Termini
	Line 1	1900	1992	25	16.6 km / 10.3 miles	692 m	161,600,000	La Défense	Château de Vincennes
	Line 2	1900	1903	25	12.3 km / 7.7 miles	513 m	92,100,000	Porte Dauphine	Nation
	Line 3	1904	1971	25	11.7 km / 7.3 miles	488 m	87,600,000	Pont de Levallois - Bécon	Gallieni
	Line 3bis	1971	1971	4	1.3 km / 0.8 miles	433 m		Porte des Lilas	Gambetta
	Line 4	1908	1910	26	10.6 km / 6.6 miles	424 m	154,100,000	Porte de Clignancourt	Porte d'Orléans
	Line 5	1906	1985	22	14.6 km / 9.1 miles	695 m	86,100,000	Bobigny - Pablo Picasso	Place d'Italie
	Line 6	1909	1942	28	13.6 km / 8.5 miles	504 m	100,700,000	Charles de Gaulle - Étoile	Nation
	Line 7	1910	1987	38	22.4 km / 13.9 miles	605 m	120,500,000	La Courneuve – 8 Mai 1945	Villejuif – Louis Aragon Mairie d'Ivry
	Line 7bis	1967	1967	8	3.1 km / 1.9 miles	443 m		Louis Blanc	Pré Saint-Gervais
	Line 8	1913	1974	37	22.1 km / 13.8 miles	614 m	89,100,000	Balard	Créteil - Préfecture
	Line 9	1922	1937	37	19.6 km / 12.2 miles	544 m	116,200,000	Pont de Sèvres	Mairie de Montreuil
	Line 10	1923	1981	23	11.7 km / 7.3 miles	532 m	41,500,000	Boulogne - Pont de Saint-Cloud	Gare d'Austerlitz
	Line 11	1935	1937	13	6.3 km / 3.9 miles	525 m	45,100,000	Châtelet	Mairie des Lilas
	Line 12	1910[5]	1934	28	13.9 km / 8.6 miles	515 m	72,100,000	Porte de la Chapelle	Mairie d'Issy
	Line 13	1911[5]	1998	30	22.5 km / 14.0 miles	776 m	105,100,000	Gabriel Péri - Asnières - Gennevilliers Saint-Denis - Université	Châtillon - Montrouge
	Line 14	1998	2007	9	10.7 km / 6.6 miles	1,129 m	64,100,000	Saint-Lazare	Olympiades

[edit] The additional express network: the RER

Paris RER lines

Line Name		Opened	Last extension	Stations served	Length	Average Interstation	Journeys made (per annum)
	Line A	1977	1994	46	108.5 km / 67.5 miles	2,411 m	272,800,000
	Line B	1977	1981	47	80.0 km / 49.8 miles	1,739 m	165,100,000
	Line C	1979	2000	86	185.6 km / 115.5 miles	2,184 m	140,000,000
	Line D	1987	1995	58	160.0 km / 99.6 miles	2,807 m	145,000,000
	Line E	1999	2003	21	52.3 km / 32.5 miles	2,615 m	60,000,000

[edit] History

During the initial development of the Paris Métro, lines tracks were dug at open air from street level and only covered later.

In 1845, the city administration and the railroad companies were already thinking about the creation of an urban rail system to serve Paris. However, discussions stalled rapidly because of the opposition of two radically different views on the shape this network should take:

• the first one consisted of extending the existing suburban lines to a newly built underground network, a solution similar to the one chosen by London authorities;
• the second one consisted of building a brand new and fully independent network which could not be connected with existing lines.

Railroad companies sponsored the first solution whereas the city of Paris sponsored the second solution. This disagreement lasted from 1856 to 1890, blocking all projects.

Meanwhile, the city of Paris was rapidly densifying because of population growth, and the problems of traffic congestion became so massive that it was insoluble without the creation of such a network. The deadlock put pressure on the authorities and gave the city of Paris the chance to enforce its conception.

[edit] Fulgence Bienvenüe project

Abbesses station features one of the art nouveau Métro entrances designed by Hector Guimard, though the physical structure started its life at Hotel de Ville and was moved to this location

On April 20, 1896, the Paris authorities adopted the Fulgence Bienvenüe network project, which would only serve the city proper of Paris. Many Parisians were worried that a network that could be extended to the industrial suburbs would reduce the safety of the city. As a result, the Paris authorities decided to forbid any development of the network to the inner suburbs. As a guarantee that such development would not occur, it was decided to make Métro trains run on the right, as opposed to existing suburban lines which ran on the left.

On July 19, 1900, the first line of the network, known as Maillot-Vincennes after the names of its termini, was inaugurated during the Paris World's Fair. The entrances to the stations were conceived in the Art Nouveau style by the architect Hector Guimard. Today, 86 of Guimard's original entrances are still in existence.

Fulgence Bienvenüe's project consisted of ten lines, which correspond to today's lines 1 to 9. The pace of construction was so intense that in 1920, despite a few changes from the original schedule, most of the planned lines had been completed. Lines 1 and 4 were conceived respectively as central east-west and central north-south lines. Two circular lines, known as ligne 2 Nord (line 2 North) and ligne 2 Sud (line 2 South) were originally planned. However, it was finally decided in 1906 to merge line 2 South with line 5. Line 3 was an additional east-west line to the north of line 1 and line 5 was an additional north-south line to the east of line 4. Line 6 would run only from Nation to Place d'Italie. Lines 7, 8 and 9 would connect commercial and office districts around the Opéra to more residential areas in the north-east and the south-west.

An additional circular line, known as ligne circulaire interieur (inner circular line) was also planned by Bienvenüe in order to connect the city's six main railway stations. The first portion of that line was inaugurated in 1923 between Invalides and the Boulevard Saint-Germain before being abandoned.

[edit] Nord-Sud: the competing network

Typical Nord-Sud tile, on the former line A (today's line 12).

On 31 January 1904, a second concession was granted to a company called the Société du chemin de fer électrique souterrain Nord-Sud de Paris (Paris North-South underground electrical railway company) and abbreviated to the Nord-Sud (North-South) company. It was responsible for building three proposed lines:

• line A would join Montmartre to Montparnasse as an additional north-south line to the west of line 4
• line B would serve the north-west of Paris only by connecting Saint-Lazare station to Porte de Clichy and Porte de Saint-Ouen
• line C would serve the south-west only by connecting Montparnasse station to Porte de Vanves.

Line A was finally inaugurated on November 4, 1910, after being postponed because of the flood Paris experienced in January of that year. Line B was inaugurated on February 26, 1911. Because of the high construction costs, the construction of line C was postponed. The Nord-Sud company and the C.M.P company used compatible trains which could be used on both networks. However, the Nord-Sud network distinguished itself from its competitor with the high-quality decoration of its stations.

Unfortunately, despite all the Nord-Sud company's efforts, it did not manage to become profitable and bankruptcy became unavoidable. By the end of 1930, the C.M.P bought the Nord-Sud company. Line A became line 12 and line B became line 13. Line C has never been built.

[edit] 1930–1950: The first inner suburbs are reached

Anatole France station on line 3, inaugurated in 1937 in the inner suburb of Levallois-Perret.

During the 20s, Fulgence Bienvenüe's project was nearly completed. As a consequence, the Paris authorities established a new development plan for the network, including three new lines and extensions of most lines to the inner suburbs, despite the reluctance of Parisians.

As the inner circular line planned by Bienvenüe had been abandoned, it was decided to use the already built portion between Duroc and Odéon for the creation of a new east-west line which would become today's line 10 and it would be extended west to Porte de Saint-Cloud and the inner suburbs of Boulogne.

The line C planned by the Nord-Sud company between Montparnasse station and Porte de Vanves would be finally built as an initial line 14 (different from nowadays line 14). It would also be extended northbound in encompassing the already built portion between Invalides and Duroc which was initially planned as part of the inner circular line.

Because the funicular to Belleville was saturated, it was also decided to replace it by a new Métro line, line 11, which would also be extended to Châtelet. Lines 10, 11 and 14 were thus the three new lines envisaged under this plan.

In addition, most existing lines would be extended to the inner suburbs. The first line to leave the city proper was line 9, extended in 1934 to Boulogne-Billancourt; many more would follow it in the 1930s. Unfortunately, World War II forced authorities to abandon various projects such as the extension of lines 4 or 12 to the northern suburbs. By 1949, eight lines had been extended outside the city proper: line 1 to Neuilly and Vincennes, line 3 to Levallois-Perret, line 5 to Pantin, line 7 to Ivry, line 8 to Charenton, line 9 to Boulogne-Billancourt, line 11 to Les Lilas and line 12 to Issy-les-Moulineaux.

World War II had a massive impact on the Paris Métro. During the German occupation, Métro services were limited and many stations were closed. Because of the bombing risk, it was decided that the service between Place d'Italie and Étoile would be transferred from line 5 to line 6 so that most of the elevated portions of the Paris Métro would be on a single line: line 6. As a result, lines 2 and 6 together now form a circle.

After the liberation by the Allied forces and the French Resistance in 1944, the network needed a long time to fully recover. Many stations had not yet reopened in the 1960s and some were finally closed, they would later be known as stations fantômes (ghost stations). On March 23, 1948, French authorities created a new company by the merger of the C.M.P (managing the subway) and the STCRP (managing bus and tramways), known as the RATP and it is still the operator of the Métro network.

[edit] 1960–1990: the development of the RER

Charles de Gaulle étoile station on the RER A, inaugurated in 1970.

During the 1950s, the network was rapidly getting saturated. The outdated technology used at the time had as consequence insufficient train traffic capacities. As a result, the RATP decided to stop lines extensions and to concentrate its efforts on the modernization of the network. The first replacements of the older Sprague trains began with experimental "articulated" train units and then with new MP-55 and MP-59 trains running on rubber-tyred wheels, some of the last of which are still in service today (line 4). Thanks to the newer trains and an upgraded traffic signalization, trains frequency could be massively increased.

From 1950 to 1980, the population of the Paris metropolitan area boomed. Cars became more and more popular and suburbs were situated farther and farther from the city proper, which still maintained its 19th century boundaries. Paris' main railway stations, which were the termini of the suburban rail lines, were severely overcrowded during the rush hours. The short distance between stations, on average less than 500 meters, had the consequence of slowing down the network and therefore making it unprofitable to build distant extensions.

In the 1960s, the opted solution was finally to revive a project which had been abandoned at the end of the 19th century: joining suburban lines to fully new underground portions in the city centre. The proposed regional metro system would be known as the réseau express régional (regional express network) (RER).

The RER plan initially included one east-west line and two north-south lines. The RATP company bought two unprofitable SNCF lines - the Ligne de St-Germain (westbound) and the Ligne de Vincennes (eastbound) with the intention of joining them and to serve multiple districts of central Paris with new underground stations. The new line created by this merger became RER A. The Ligne de Sceaux, which served the southern suburbs and was bought by the CMP in the 1930s, would be extended north to reach the new Charles de Gaulle Airport. This line would become RER B. These new lines were inaugurated in 1977 and their wild success outperformed all the most optimistic forecasts to the extent that, today, RER A is the most used urban rail line in the world with nearly 300 million journeys a year.

Because of the enormous cost of these two lines, the third planned line was abandoned and the French authorities decided that later developments of the RER network would be more cheaply developed by the SNCF company, alongside its continued management of other suburban lines. However, the RER developed by the SNCF company would never match the success of the RATP's two RER lines. In 1979, SNCF developed RER C in joining the suburban lines of Gare d'Austerlitz and Gare d'Orsay, the latter being converted into a museum dedicated to impressionist paintings. During the 1980s, it would also develop RER D line, which was the second line planned by the initial RER schedule, but would serve Châtelet instead of République to reduce costs. A huge Métro-RER hub was created at the Châtelet-Les Halles station, the world's largest underground subway station.

The same project of the 1960s also decided to merge lines 13 and 14 to create a quick connection between Saint-Lazare and Montparnasse thanks to a new full north-south line. Distances between stations on the lengthened line 13 differ from that on other lines in order to make it more 'express' and hence to extend it farther in the suburbs. The new Line 13 was inaugurated on November 9, 1976.

[edit] 1990–2010: Eole and Météor

Gare de Lyon station on line 14, inaugurated in 1998.

In October 1998, the line 14 was inaugurated. It was the first fully new Métro (not RER) line in 63 years. The project, which was known during its conception as Météor (Métro Est-Ouest Rapide), is still the only fully automatic line within the network. It was also the first to feature platform screen doors to prevent suicides and accidents.

It was conceived with extensions to the suburbs in mind, similar to the extensions of the line 13 built during the 1970s. As a result, most of the stations are at least a kilometre apart. Like the RER lines designed by the RATP, nearly all stations of line 14 offer connections with multiple Métro lines. The line currently runs between Saint-Lazare and Olympiades. Lines 7 and 13 are the only two on the network to be split in branches. The RATP would like to get rid of those saturated branches in order to improve the network's efficiency. As such, a project consists in attributing to the line 14 one of branches of each line, and to extend them further in suburbs. This project has not yet been approved.

In 1999, the RER E was inaugurated as the latest extension of the network. Known during its conception as Eole (Est-Ouest Liaison Express), it is the fifth RER line serving Paris. Currently, the RER E terminates at Haussmann - Saint-Lazare, but a new project, financed by EPAD, the public authority managing the La Défense business district, should extend the line west into La Défense - Grande Arche and the suburbs beyond.

[edit] Accidents

• August 10, 1903 — The Couronnes Disaster (fire), 84 killed.
• August 30, 2000 — an MF 67 rolling stock derailled due to excessive speed and unavailable automatic crusing at the Notre-Dame-de-Lorette station, 24 light injured.
• August 6, 2005 — fire broke out on a train at the Simplon station. The fire injured at least 19 people before it was extinguished. Early reports blamed an electrical short circuit as the cause.

[edit] See also

Another Guimard-designed entrance to the Métro, on Île de la Cité, in the very heart of the city.

• List of stations of the Paris Métro
• List of rapid transit systems
• RER, the Paris regional express network
• Transport in Paris
• Transportation in France
• Rubber-tyred metro

[edit] References

[edit] Bibliography

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Paris Metro

[edit] English

• (English) Guide to the Paris Métro (PDF)
• (English) CityMayors.com article
• (English) General Paris Métro information
• (English) Photographic and sonic tour of a large proportion of the system

[edit] French

• (French) RATP official site
• (French) news and information about Paris transit system (bus, RER, métro)
• (French) Map of the Métro and RER
• (French) Paris public transport statistics, 2005