Toulouse

Overview

As in Bordeaux, there were tramways in Toulouse, beginning July 30, 1887 and operated by horse power (4 lines, A thru D). These were operated by a company called Société Anonyme des Tramways et Omnibus F. Pons (which become Société des Transports en Commun de la Région Toulousaine/STCRT in 1921). The first lines were converted to electric operation May 7, 1906. But the Toulousaine tramways didn't last long, the first line (no. 8) closed August 6, 1937, and the rest on July 7, 1957. For the next 30 years there was no rail transit in Toulouse (excluding main line railways).

The municipality decided to built a metro in 1983 and choose the VAL system, used elsewhere in France, in 1985. Work began in 1989 and the fist line "A" opened June 26, 1993 between Mirail/Basso-Cambo and Jolimont. It was extended from Jolimont to Gramont-Balma in December, 2003. This network was first operated by SEMAT, later by Connex (a Veolia subsidiary) and from 2005 by Tisseo Réseau Urbain (a public administration). Line "A" now has 18 stations and a total length of 12.5 km. It is electrified with 750 volts third rail. Trainsets are VAL 206 (29 units built by Matra) and VAL 208 (14 units built by Siemens).

Metro Line "B" is under construction between Borderouge and Ramonville (15 km, 20 stations), predicted to open June 30, 2007. This line will be extended to Labège-Innopole by 2013. Metro Line "C" is a SNCF line linking Les Arènes to Colomiers, which was modernized and reopened as a metro-style line (4 trains per hour) in October, 2003. Similarly, Line "D" is a SNCF line between Toulouse-Matabiau and Muret. Line E is a tramway under construction between Les Arènes and Garossos (11 km), scheduled to open in 2009.

More Information

Travelers should visit the official web site for any updates to the fares and schedules as presented in this article.

Official Site - Tisseo Réseau Urbain