Historic Metre-Gauge Railways in Provence

[rogerfarnworth]

My wife and I travel each year to Nice or other towns/cities in Provence and on the Cote d'Azur. Out of these regular Autumn visits has grown an interest in the extensive network of metre-gauge lines which all were lost by the late 1950s with the exception of the Nice to Digne line.

I have been working on a series of blogs about the different lines. The post below is the first in a series about the Central Var line of Les Chemins de Fer du Sud de La France. ...

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.com/2017/11/20/ligne-de-central-var-part-1

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The second post in a series about the Central Var line in Provence:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-2-chemins-de-fer-de-provence-14

 

[MikeR]

Hello Roger,

Very interesting, enjoyable and very well compiled, thank you. I am in the process of exploring the disused, standard gauge lines of SW France where I live, I tend to group the photos into Flickr Albums as work commitments have prohibited the time to do a "Blog" format but you are making me have a re-think.

 

[rogerfarnworth]

Thank you Mike.

Here is the third one .........

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...d-cagne-sur-mer-chemins-de-fer-de-provence-17

This tramway links in with the Central Var at Vence.

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The next length of the Central Var Line takes us from Vence to Le Pont de Loup, the iconic viaduct which for many people defines the line:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-3-chemins-de-fer-de-provence-18

 

[rogerfarnworth]

This fourth post may well require you to download a Microsoft Word file. It covers the length of the line from Le Pont de Loup to Grasse.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ntral-var-part-4-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-19

 

[rogerfarnworth]

A number of different railways met at Grasse. Two tramways, one from Cagnes-sur-Mer and one from Cannes approached the town from the south. A PLM branchline also linked Grasse to Cannes. There was a funicular railway linking the PLM (SNCF) railway station to the town centre, and there was the Chemins de Fer du Sud de la France Central Var line crossing the town on its way between Nice and Meyrargues.

This next post covers the first part of the story of the TAM tramway between Cagnes-sur-Mer and Grasse:

https://rogerfarnwor...-de-provence-20

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The second half of my blog on the TAM tramway between Grasse and Cagnes-sur-Mer:

https://rogerfarnwor...-de-provence-21

 

[rogerfarnworth]

There was also a Tramway between Grasse and Cannes. This next post covers that line ....

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...rasse-and-cannes-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-22

 

[rogerfarnworth]

And a PLM (SNCF) branch-line from Cannes to Grasse which is covered by this next post. This includes a link to a video of a cab-ride along the line:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ndard-gauge-line-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-24

 

[rogerfarnworth]

Grasse also enjoyed a funicular railway linking the town centre with the PLM railway station. This post provides details of the funicular and also of plans which have been made but not yet implemented(if they ever will be) for a new funicular. .....

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ailway-in-grasse-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-23

 

[rogerfarnworth]

I have updated the blog about the length of the Central Var Line between Pont de Loup and Grasse to include the full text of the blog rather than a downloadable file. if this has been a handicap to you accessing the text and pictures, please review the blog post:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ntral-var-part-4-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-19

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The next post in the series about the Central Var line in Provence. The post covers the PLM branch line between Cannes and Grasse.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ndard-gauge-line-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-24

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The Central Var line of Les Chemins de Fer du Sud de La France continues westward. This length runs from the station in Grasse to Peymeinade:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ntral-var-part-5-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-25

 

[rogerfarnworth]

This next length of the Central Var line runs from Peymeinade to Tanneron. After the invasion by allied forces in 1944 and the destruction by retreating German forces of a number of Viaducts, Tanneron became the eastern terminus of the Central Var line and renmained so until full closure of the line early in 1950.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ntral-var-part-6-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-26

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The next length of the line starts at Tanneron and finishes at Seillans:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ntral-var-part-7-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-27

 

[rogerfarnworth]

Our survey of the Central Var Metre-Gauge Line continues with the length from Seillans to Claviers ....

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ntral-var-part-8-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-28

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The journey along the Central Var metre-gauge line continues from Claviers to Figanieres.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...ntral-var-part-9-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-29

 

[rogerfarnworth]

In this next post we reach Draguignan which very quickly became the premier town on the Nice to Meyrargues line.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-10-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-30

 

[rogerfarnworth]

Draguignan to Lorgues

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-11-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-31

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The journey along the Central Var Metre-Gauge line between Nice and Meyrargues continues with the length from Lorgues to Sillans-la-Cascade:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-12-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-32

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The next length of the Central Var line runs from Sillans-la-Cascade to Barjols:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-13-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-33

 

[rogerfarnworth]

And now from Barjols to Rians

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-14-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-34

 

[rogerfarnworth]

And from Rians to Meyrargues

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...tral-var-part-15-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-35

 

[rogerfarnworth]

I am working on a short series of posts about the Locomotives and rolling stock on the line from Nice to Meyrargues. The first of these covers the steam traction on the line:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...entral-var-line-chemins-de-fer-de-provence-50

 

[rogerfarnworth]

Alongside the work I am doing on the Central Var Line l have been pulling together a series of posts about Le Macaron. The metre-gauge line along the coast between Toulon and Saint-Raphael. This is the first of these posts:

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...t-raphael-part-1-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-36

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The second post in the series about the coastal line out of Toulon shows the competition it faced from other forms of transport and then focusses on the two main railway stations in Toulon ... first the PLM Station (SNCF now) and then the terminus of Le Chemin de Fer du Sud, the line that we will concentrate on in this series of posts.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...t-raphael-part-2-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-37

 

[rogerfarnworth]

The third post looks at one of the competitors to Le Macaron. The tramways of Toulon. The network reached as far as the town centre of Hyeres.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...oulon-and-hyeres-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-38

 

[rogerfarnworth]

This is the next post in a series about the Chemins de Fer du Sud de la France's Coastal line between Toulon and Saint-Raphael. This post focusses on the PLM line which both competed for passenger traffic with Le Macaron between Toulon and Hyeres but also provided an essential link into the national network through the exchange sidings at Hyeres.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...s-salins-dhyeres-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-39

 

[rogerfarnworth]

This post relates to the length of Le Macaron between the terminus in Toulon and the town of Hyeres.

https://rogerfarnworth.wordpress.co...toulon-to-hyeres-chemin-de-fer-de-provence-39