Chemin de fer de La Mure
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The Chemin de fer de La Mure is an electrically operated, meter- gauge railway line south of Grenoble in France between Saint-Georges-de-Commiers and La Mure , which was used to transport anthracite coal from the La Mure mines , primarily for supply from Grenoble. The line has been operated as a museum railway since 1997 .
Route description
The route overcomes a height difference of 550 meters over 30 kilometers and leads over six large viaducts and through 18 tunnels with a total length of more than 4 km. The maximum gradient is 28.5 ‰. The exit station in Saint-Georges-de-Commiers is located next to the station of the same name at an altitude of 316 m on the Lyon – Grenoble – Marseille railway line . The route leaves it to the northeast and immediately turns in a tunnel to the southwest in order to bypass the Monteynard plateau . Several curves are used to gain height. South of Notre-Dame-d'Aveillans , the route leads along the slope above the east bank of the elongated reservoir of the same name, then about 150 meters above the level of the Monteynard-Avignonet reservoir. It then turns east and, after further curves and tunnels, reaches La Motte-d'Aveillans at an altitude of 875 m, from where the non-electrified route branched off to Notre-Dame-de-Vaulx (in operation from 1888 to 1936). After a long tunnel under La Festinière (925 m), the route heads south downhill to La Mure (882 m).
Construction and electrification
The line was inaugurated after six years of construction in 1888 together with a branch from La Motte-d'Aveillans to Notre-Dame-de-Vaulx . The difficult terrain did not allow the construction of a standard gauge line , so the meter gauge was used. Below La Côte de Crozet, the building site on the steep mountain slope was even prepared by artillery fire from the opposite side of the valley. Initially, the line was operated with steam locomotives built by the Fives-Lille company.
For electrification from 1906, a three-wire direct current system developed by the Swiss engineer René Thury was originally used with one conductor at +1200 volts, one at −1200 volts and a "neutral" conductor between the two voltages, which after successful attempts on a section in 1912 the entire route between Saint-Georges-de-Commiers and La Mure was extended. The supply took place via a two-pole overhead contact line with the running rails as "neutral conductor" and two pairs of pantographs on the locomotives. This enabled high power to be transmitted, while at the same time keeping the traction motor voltage within acceptable limits.
The first electric locomotive E1 "Le Drac", named after the river lying next to the route, weighed 50 tons and had four axles with single axle drive , the four motors of which together made 500 HP (approx. 367 kW ). It was able to pull 20 empty wagons (i.e. 100 tons) on the ascent and 300 tons on the descent at a speed of 22.5 km / h. Four similar machines were delivered between 1905 and 1909 and were in service until 1933.
In 1926 the line from La Mure via Siévoz to Valbonnais was extended, which required the construction of another viaduct, in 1932 from Siévoz to Corps . There was no longer a connection to Gap via the route through the Champsaur , which began in 1912 but was never completed , nor was the branch to Notre-Dame-de-Vaulx to Laffrey extended .
In 1951 the railway was converted to 2400 volts direct current with a conventional single-pole contact line.
business
The main purpose of the route was to transport anthracite. In 1935, three pairs of passenger trains ran daily between Saint-Georges-de-Commiers and Corps and one between Saint-Georges and La Mure. To and from Valbonnais you had to change trains in Siévoz. Until the cessation of operations on the junction to Notre-Dame-de-Vaulx in 1936, there was also passenger traffic there. As a result of competition from road traffic, passenger traffic was completely discontinued in 1950. In 1952 all traffic between La Mure and Corps ended.
The increasing use of petroleum products as fuel led to a decline in the demand for anthracite. Therefore, the coal transport was stopped in 1988. In 1997 the line was reopened as a museum railway for tourism purposes and a short extension was built in La Mure along the Jonche river for occasional special trips. From April to October, up to four pairs of trains ran a day with encounters in La Motte-d'Aveillans. The top speed was 30 km / h and the journey time was around 1 hour 40 minutes. In 2008 the catenary was renewed.
Interruption and future
On October 26, 2010, the line was buried in a rock fall at a distance of 13,460 kilometers on a short section between two tunnels and has been out of service since then. After previous concepts had failed, it was announced in 2018 that the upper section between La Mure and Belvédère de Monteynard should go back into operation from July 2020.
literature
- R. Arsenne: Le Chemin de Fer de La Mure . SOFITEC, Paris, 1981.
- Comité d'Expansion de la Matheysine: Le Pays de la Mure . In: Guide Rhonalpin de Patrimoine Meconnu . tape 10 . Patrimoine Rhonalpin, 1988.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Construction et trajet . Rail Modélisme Sud Isère. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
- ↑ Gisel Chautant: Le chemin de fer du Champsaur, ou les péripéties d'un projet inabouti . Editions du Buëch, 2011, ISBN 978-2-918 043133 .
- ↑ Le train de La Mure ne circule plus . Dauphiné Libéré. October 27, 2010. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
- ^ SOS Chemin de Fer de La Mure . Forum Train. Retrieved July 29, 2015.
- ↑ À l'arrêt pendant 8 ans, le petit train de la Mure en Isère reprend enfin du service . France Télévisions. June 19, 2018. Retrieved October 12, 2018.