Rail transport in France

• Network length - 30 000 km
• Electrified - 15 687 km.
• Track gauge - 1 435 mm.
• The number of passengers carried - 1 013 million (2006)
• Amount of cargo transported - 108 330 000 tons (2006)

The history of French railways begins at the beginning of the 19th century , with the opening of a branch, horse-drawn in Saint-Etienne on February 26, 1823 . It was built by order of King Louis XVIII , 23 kilometers long, and used to transport coal.

The Saint-Etienne - Lyon line , 58 kilometers long, was built between 1830 and 1832 . For the development of the railway network, it was decided to build a number of lines connecting the capital with other cities.

In June 1842, the "Charter of Railways" was adopted. The state becomes the owner of the land chosen for the construction of roads and it finances the construction of infrastructure. It signs contracts with companies that build facilities: railways, various installations, invest in rolling stock and have a monopoly on the operation of its lines.

The network developed quite quickly, especially after 1850 , when Paris was connected by rail with the cities of Bayonne , Toulouse , Clermont-Ferrand , Marseille , Basel , Dunkirk . Gradually, the network began to be divided between six large companies. Regional networks are also forming between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, but they have gradually closed since 1930 .

August 31, 1937 adopted a decree on the nationalization of railway networks.

Since the late 1990s, reforms have been carried out under the European Union , including the separation between infrastructure and operation, which led to the creation of the French Railway Network (RFF) in 1997 .

The Paris Metro, opened in 1900 , was the only one in the country until 1974 , when the first metro line of Lyon opened, and in 1977 the metro opened in Marseille .

New networks are developing quite slowly and use the so-called light automatic metro ( Véhicule ). Such a metro is located in Lille , which first used this technology since 1983 , as well as in Toulouse and Rennes ; both Paris airports are also equipped with lines called Orlyval and CDGVAL .

Tram is one of the oldest modes of transport in France. Tram networks developed in numerous agglomerations during the second half from the 19th century to the first years of the 20th century.

Trams gradually disappear, starting in 1930 , and mainly after the war.

New interest in the tram arises from the overload of city centers and oil shocks, appears in 1970. It is planned to develop a modern tram designed for eight large cities in France. In 1985 , the first modern tram network opens. In 2000 , nineteen French agglomerations were equipped with such trams.

• Same track width:
  •   Belgium - voltage change, 3 kV DC.
  •   Germany - voltage change, 3 kV DC - 15 kV AC.
  •   UK through the tunnel, voltage change.
  •   Italy - a change of tension.
  •   Luxembourg - voltage change, 3 kV DC / 15 kV AC.
  •   Switzerland - voltage change, 3 kV DC / 15 kV AC.
• Different track widths:
  •   Spain - change of tension, track 1668 mm.
  •   Andorra - no train connections.