Metro line 3 (Paris)

map
Route length:	11.7 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Opening:	1904
Passengers (daily) :	241,000
Stations:	25th
Legend Turning and sidings Pont de Levallois - Bécon Anatole France Louise Michel Turning loop Porte de Champerret Pereire Wagram Malesherbes former turning loop Villiers Europe Saint-Lazare RER A Havre - Caumartin Auber Connecting track to line 7 Opéra Quatre-Septembre Bourse RER B / RER C Sentier Réaumur - Sébastopol Connecting track to line 11 Arts et Métiers Temple Republique Connecting track to line 5 Parmentier Rue Saint-Maur Connecting track to line 2 Père Lachaise Martin Nadaud (until August 23, 1969) Former connecting track to line 3bis Gambetta Connecting track to line 3bis Saint-Fargeau depot Porte de Bagnolet Gallieni Turning and sidings

The Line 3 of the Paris Métro connects the stations Pont de Levallois - Bécon in the northwest and Gallieni in the east of Paris .

history

Père Lachaise metro station 1991

Arts et Métiers station, inspired by Jules Verne

When building line 3, the same problems arose as with the previous lines: watercourses and poor subsoil conditions made problems for the engineers. The Canal Saint-Martin was crossed "under water" for the first time by the Métro on this line. In the future, the three lines 3, 7 and 8 should cross at the Opéra , so it was decided to complete the construction work in one go, which took a whole year. The opening happened in two stages, due to unexpected difficulties in building towards Gambetta . The section between Villiers and Père Lachaise was opened on October 19, 1904, the section between Père Lachaise and Gambetta on January 25, 1905. Five-car trains with 3 motor vehicles were used.

The first extension of line 3 from Villiers to Porte de Champerret was originally planned as line 3 ^bis and should be started immediately after the opening of the main line. At Porte Villiers , line 2 had to be crossed or underpassed, which required a complete lowering of the previous station. So the extension dragged on until 1910 and could only be done in stages: From Villiers to Péreire on May 23, 1910 and from Péreire to Porte de Champerret on February 15, 1911. The plan for a 3 ^bis was given up and added Extension into the main line.

In the 1920s it was determined that an extension of the Métro into the suburbs would be essential and line 3 began to be extended by two more sections. The first extension from Gambetta to Porte des Lilas took place on November 27, 1927, at the other end of the line the line from Porte de Champerret to Pont de Levallois was opened on September 24, 1937.

In 1967, line 3 was the first to receive new vehicles from the MF67 series, in 1970 it was connected to the central signaling system, and in 1973 automatic driving was introduced.

In the spring of 1971, the traffic on line 3 was re-regulated, as an extension from Gambetta to Gallieni was put into operation on April 2nd .

At the newly built intermediate station Porte de Bagnolet , line 3 divides into two tunnels: the older one leads to the Saint-Fargeau depot , the other, new one to the new Gallieni terminus . In Gallieni, the Métro terminus was integrated into a huge park + ride complex. The station was designed very generously, 2 platforms with 2 tracks each and an extensive parking facility. The bus station for long-distance buses to and from Paris is also located within this complex. B. from Eurolines .

The branch from Gambetta to Porte des Lilas was converted into an independent line 3 ^bis on March 27, 1971 . For this purpose, some modifications had to be made at Gambetta station . New platforms were put into operation west of the old station. The old departure platform became the terminus of the new line 3 ^bis . The old arrival platform was converted into a tunnel with 3 tracks.

The distance to the previous station Martin Nadaud was already the shortest in the entire network (230 meters). It was therefore decided to give up this station entirely and to integrate it into the new Gambetta station . The old platforms now serve as access to the new station.

Line 3 has 17 stations, 4 of which are covered with a metal plate, which was expected to save costs in maintenance.

The Saint-Fargeau depot was opened in the 20th arrondissement in 1904 and modernized in 1966 and 1993 to accommodate new vehicles. All vehicles on lines 3, 3 ^to and 7 ^{to are} serviced here on an area of ​​15,000 square meters .

Renaming of stations

During the more than 100-year history of the Paris Metro, the official names of a number of stations have changed. Some stations have even been renamed several times. Four stations were affected on line 3:

Name changes on line 3

today's name	since	previous name (s)
Réaumur - Sébastopol	1907	Rue Saint-Denis
Havre - Caumartin	1926	Caumartin
Louise Michel	1946	Vallier Champs-Élysées
Rue Saint-Maur (Paris Métro)	1998	Saint-Maur

literature

• Jean Tricoire: Un siècle de métro en 14 lignes: De Bienvenüe à Météor . 3. Edition. La Vie du Rail, Paris 2004. ISBN 2-915034-32-X .

Web links

Commons : Métrolinie 3 (Paris)  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files