Lourdes – Artigues railway line
| Lourdes – Artigues | |
|---|---|
| Route length: | 41 km |
| Gauge : | 1000 mm ( meter gauge ) |
| Power system : | 6000 ~ |
The first section of the Lourdes – Artigues railway in the Hautes-Pyrénées department was commissioned in 1914 by the Compagnie des Tramways électriques de la Bigorre (TEB) after several years of construction . This company was transferred to the Société des Voies ferrées d'interet local des Pyrénées (VFP) in 1918 , a subsidiary of the Südbahngesellschaft (Midi) .
This meter-gauge railway from Lourdes via Bagnères-de-Bigorre to Sainte-Marie-de-Campan was 33 kilometers long. The further construction over the valley and hamlet of Gripp to the plateau of Artigues ( 1240 m ; all three in the municipality of Campan ) was delayed by the start of the war and could only be completed in 1915.
The total length of 41 kilometers was then electrified with single-phase alternating current of 6000 volts. Because of the different voltage of the inner-city tram, its tracks to the south station were not used. The terminus of the VFP trains in Lourdes was at Place Peyramale in the east of the old town. The center of operations with the workshop was in Bagnères-de-Bigorre, wagon sheds were also in Lourdes and Ste. Marie-de-Campan.
In just a few years, VFP's rail operations were accompanied by three serious accidents that claimed a total of 17 deaths. This circumstance and financial difficulties led to the discontinuation of railway operations above Gripp in 1924, which had been limited to seasonal tourist traffic. From 1932 the offer was again reduced to a low rush hour from Bagnères on the one hand to Trébons and on the other to Campan. This remaining eleven kilometer stretch was shut down in 1934 after only twenty years of operation.
literature
- Henri Domengie: Les petits trains de jadis - Volume 7: Sud-Ouest de la France. Editions du Cabri, Breil-sur-Roya 1986. ISBN 2-903310-48-3