Joyeux anniversaire, TGV !!!

[marmar]

from the Transport Politic blog:






After 30 Years, TGV Service Prospers Even as its Future is Questioned


Thursday, France celebrated the 30th anniversary of the opening of the high-speed link between Paris and Lyon by then-President François Mitterand, an occasion that redefined travel in Europe and encouraged countries around the world in invest in faster train service by offering train service at speeds above 150 mph for the first time. SNCF, the public national rail company, celebrated this evening at Paris’ Gare de Lyon, where services first originated.

The distinct orange and blue TGV trains that have rocketed through the French countryside at speeds of up to 320 km/h (200 mph) since 1981 have been extraordinarily successful in attracting travelers away from airlines and even the highways because of the quick journey times they offer between center-cities. And they’re supremely safe: More than 1.7 billion rides have been taken on TGVs, fatality-free. Because of France’s reliance on nuclear plants, the electric-powered service has provided the country a low-carbon travel alternative; when considering alternative routes people would have taken without high-speed service, new routes — including construction and operations — are carbon positive* in the long-term.

Because of a series of investments in new dedicated passenger lines, Paris is now three hours from the Mediterranean, two hours and twenty minutes from London and the German border, and one hour and twenty minutes from Brussels. 2,300 km of new lines already under construction or planned for opening within the next decade (see map at the end of the article) promise significant improvements that will bring Toulouse and the Spanish border within three hours of Paris.

http://www.eurail.com/sites/all/files/all/maps/railway/TGV-France,Switzerland,Belg.gif

The high cost of new rail lines, however, puts in question how much further expansion the French can afford. ..........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2011/09/24/after-30-years-tgv-service-prospers-even-as-its-future-is-questioned/

[nxylas]

1. Wish they'd expand the TGV network as far as Athens

I have family there.