Angers tramway
Encyclopedia
The Angers tramway is a tram
way in the French
city of Angers
. Opened on 25 June 2011, Line A is operated by Keolis
and replaced some bus lines, with the buses redeployed throughout the rest of the metropolitan area. Alstom's APS ground-level power supply
has been used on two parts of the line totalling 1.5 km in order to avoid overhead lines
in the centre of Angers
and Avrillé
. Angers is the second city using such system, after Bordeaux
.
a €47m contract to supply 17 Citadis
302 trams on 15 November 2006.
and personalization
of the rolling stock
is characterized by its front end "convergence" V-shaped recalling the form of a shield. The other major feature is the ubiquity of a rainbow
sky, signed by the french agency RCP Design Global
is found on the documentation for the streetcar and other transportation in the city.
The interior of the train
s is marked by floral
figures in different colors on the ceiling, white walls and green seats on the basis of the geological layers
of Anjou
.
Main features for Line A:
As the line goes on both banks of the Maine, a new bridge is being built to allow trains to cross the river. It connects centre hospitalier universitaire to Saint-Serge. This 270m bridge is accessible to bicycles and pedestrians as well as emergency vehicles.
, via the Atoll shopping centre and Belle-Beille University to the main railway station and Parc des Expositions (Saint-Sylvain-d'Anjou
) through Monplaisir district.
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
way in the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
city of Angers
Angers
Angers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
. Opened on 25 June 2011, Line A is operated by Keolis
Keolis
Keolis is the largest private sector French transport group. It runs passenger railways, tramways, bus networks, funiculars, trolley buses, and airport services. The company, based in Paris, is majority owned by SNCF, the French state rail operator. AXA Private Equity and Caisse de dépôt et...
and replaced some bus lines, with the buses redeployed throughout the rest of the metropolitan area. Alstom's APS ground-level power supply
Ground-level power supply
Ground-level power supply, also known as surface current collection and Alimentation par Sol is a modern method of third-rail electrical pick-up for street trams. It was invented for the Bordeaux tramway, which was constructed from 2000 and opened in 2003. Until 2011, this is the only place it is...
has been used on two parts of the line totalling 1.5 km in order to avoid overhead lines
Overhead lines
Overhead lines or overhead wires are used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains at a distance from the energy supply point...
in the centre of Angers
Angers
Angers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
and Avrillé
Avrillé
Avrillé is the name or part of the name of the following communes in France:* Avrillé, Maine-et-Loire, in the Maine-et-Loire department* Avrillé, Vendée, in the Vendée department* Avrillé-les-Ponceaux, in the Indre-et-Loire department...
. Angers is the second city using such system, after Bordeaux
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.The Bordeaux-Arcachon-Libourne metropolitan area, has a population of 1,010,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture...
.
Dates
- April 2007: Works officially started.
- April 2010: Delivery of the CitadisCitadisThe Citadis is a low-floor tram built by Alstom in La Rochelle, France, and Barcelona, Spain. 1,140 Citadis are currently in use in 28 cities, among others: Bordeaux, Grenoble, Lyon, Montpellier, Orléans, the Paris area, and Barcelona, Dublin, Gdańsk, Katowice, Adelaide, Melbourne, Jerusalem and...
302 trams - December 2010: Testing
- January 2011: Operation of shadow service without passengers
- 25 June 2011: Line A in service
Trams
Angers Loire Métropole awarded AlstomAlstom
Alstom is a large multinational conglomerate which holds interests in the power generation and transport markets. According to the company website, in the years 2010-2011 Alstom had annual sales of over €20.9 billion, and employed more than 85,000 people in 70 countries. Alstom's headquarters are...
a €47m contract to supply 17 Citadis
Citadis
The Citadis is a low-floor tram built by Alstom in La Rochelle, France, and Barcelona, Spain. 1,140 Citadis are currently in use in 28 cities, among others: Bordeaux, Grenoble, Lyon, Montpellier, Orléans, the Paris area, and Barcelona, Dublin, Gdańsk, Katowice, Adelaide, Melbourne, Jerusalem and...
302 trams on 15 November 2006.
Design of rolling stock
DesignDesign
Design as a noun informally refers to a plan or convention for the construction of an object or a system while “to design” refers to making this plan...
and personalization
Personalization
Personalization involves using technology to accommodate the differences between individuals. Once confined mainly to the Web, it is increasingly becoming a factor in education, health care Personalization involves using technology to accommodate the differences between individuals. Once confined...
of the rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
is characterized by its front end "convergence" V-shaped recalling the form of a shield. The other major feature is the ubiquity of a rainbow
Rainbow
A rainbow is an optical and meteorological phenomenon that causes a spectrum of light to appear in the sky when the Sun shines on to droplets of moisture in the Earth's atmosphere. It takes the form of a multicoloured arc...
sky, signed by the french agency RCP Design Global
RCP Design Global
RCP Design Global or RCP is an independent design agency based in Tours and Paris fonded by Régine Charvet-Pello in . RCP is predominantly based in the transport and mobility design, and specialises in urban transport, High-speed rail, interiors, public spaces and street furniture...
is found on the documentation for the streetcar and other transportation in the city.
The interior of the train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
s is marked by floral
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
figures in different colors on the ceiling, white walls and green seats on the basis of the geological layers
Stratum
In geology and related fields, a stratum is a layer of sedimentary rock or soil with internally consistent characteristics that distinguish it from other layers...
of Anjou
Anjou
Anjou is a former county , duchy and province centred on the city of Angers in the lower Loire Valley of western France. It corresponds largely to the present-day département of Maine-et-Loire...
.
Line A: Avrillé-La Roseraie
The total budget for the first line, re-evaluated in 2008, is around €350m (€47m for the trams), up from the 2004 estimate of €250m.Main features for Line A:
- North-South connection for the metropolitan area, connecting AvrilléAvrilléAvrillé is the name or part of the name of the following communes in France:* Avrillé, Maine-et-Loire, in the Maine-et-Loire department* Avrillé, Vendée, in the Vendée department* Avrillé-les-Ponceaux, in the Indre-et-Loire department...
(third town population wise) to La Roseraie (most populous district in AngersAngersAngers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
). - Non-stop service from 5.30 AM until 0.30 AM (19 hours a day)
- 25 stations
- End to end journey time of 37 minutes;
- Average speed of 20 km/h (13 mph)
- 6 minute headways in the peaks.
- 35,000 passengers expected every day
As the line goes on both banks of the Maine, a new bridge is being built to allow trains to cross the river. It connects centre hospitalier universitaire to Saint-Serge. This 270m bridge is accessible to bicycles and pedestrians as well as emergency vehicles.
Advantages
- Good public transport system for AvrilléAvrilléAvrillé is the name or part of the name of the following communes in France:* Avrillé, Maine-et-Loire, in the Maine-et-Loire department* Avrillé, Vendée, in the Vendée department* Avrillé-les-Ponceaux, in the Indre-et-Loire department...
(third town in the metropolitan area after AngersAngersAngers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
and TrélazéTrélazéTrélazé is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France.-See also:*Communes of the Maine-et-Loire department...
), le renforcement du centre ville, l’aménagement de nouveaux quartiers - Connecting new districts: Plateaux de la Mayenne and des Capucins
- Station close to Terra BotanicaTerra Botanica- See also :* Jardin botanique de la Faculté de Pharmacie d'Angers* Jardin des Plantes d'Angers* List of botanical gardens in France...
- Connecting large infrastructures CHU (4.500 employees and 3.000 visitors a day), Angers Saint-Laud railway station and the administrative city
- The new bridge on the Maine encourages transport doux (tram/bicycles/pedestrians) between the hospital and the multiplexGaumont Film CompanyGaumont Film Company is a French film production company founded in 1895 by the engineer-turned-inventor, Léon Gaumont . Gaumont is the oldest continously operating film company in the world....
- A better connection for AngersAngersAngers is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins....
city centre and a reorganisation of the traffic - A more attractive city centre (a larger pedestrian area and redynamising the low part of town)
- Complementarity of different transport types around the central connection point, Angers Saint-Laud railway and bus station
- Connecting La Roseraie as part of the urban renovation of the district.
Drawbacks
- No connection for the biggest campus of Angers in Belle-Beille, which will be connected by Line B.
- Line A passes through place du Ralliement, which will still be accessible for pedestrians, emergency and delivery vehicles as well as bicycles, but buses will not have access to it, nor other tram lines will.
Stations
- Roseraie
- Jean Vilar
- Jean XXIII
- Bamako
- Létanduère-Strasbourg
- Place Lafayette
- Les Gares
- Foch-Haras
- Foch-Maison Bleue
- Place du Ralliement
- Place Molière
- Saint-Serge Université
- Berges de Maine
- Hôpital-C.H.U
- Capucins
- Jean Moulin
- Les Chalets
- Verneau
- Terra Botanica
- Plateau de la Mayenne
- Bois du Roy
- Acacias
- Avrillé-centre
- Bascule
- Avrillé-Ardenne
Line B: Beaucouzé-Monplaisir-Parc Expos
The 15 km (9.3 mi) Line B will open in 2015. It will run from BeaucouzéBeaucouzé
Beaucouzé is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France....
, via the Atoll shopping centre and Belle-Beille University to the main railway station and Parc des Expositions (Saint-Sylvain-d'Anjou
Saint-Sylvain-d'Anjou
Saint-Sylvain-d'Anjou is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France.-References:*...
) through Monplaisir district.