Orange – Buis-les-Baronnies narrow-gauge railway
| Orange-Buis-les-Baronnies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Route number (SNCF) : | 931,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Route length: | 49.7 km | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gauge : | 1000 mm ( meter gauge ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The narrow-gauge line Orange-Buis-les-Baronnies was a narrow-gauge railway in meter gauge that operated from 1907 to 1952 and connected Buis-les-Baronnies and Orange . As early as 1938, however, most of the traffic was shifted to the road , so that after the Second World War only one pair of trains ran daily.
history
Initial plans for a railway line from Orange into the Alps envisaged a line between Orange and Nyons through the Eygues Valley . But due to the many floods of the river, this plan was initially rejected. Instead, a line followed from Pierrelatte to Nyons, which opened on June 18, 1886 . In 1885, however, plans arose to build a line between Orange and Buis-les-Baronnies, whereby the Aygues valley was only partially used and the lines largely followed the course of the Ouvèze . The official decision to build the line was made on July 16, 1896 . However, the start of construction was delayed by a few years. The official opening took place on May 10, 1907. The Compagnie des chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée (short: PLM) was responsible for the operation .
With the takeover of PLM by SNCF on January 1, 1938 in the course of the nationalization of the French railways, the line lost its importance. Nevertheless, trains still ran until 1952, but mostly only one pair of trains per day. The line has been closed for good since November 12, 1954. Today the route is completely dismantled. Only a few railway facilities, such as tunnels , bridgeheads of railway bridges and station buildings , as well as railway embankments, bear witness to their former existence.
Route
The route began at Orange train station. From there it led first through the valley of the Eygues to Camaret-sur-Aigues. There it twisted from the Eygues and led through a side valley through Violès to Sèguret. From here she followed the Ouvèze to her destination. The center of the route was Vaison-la-Romaine. Just a few kilometers behind the station Vaison the train crosses the department of border Vaucluse - Drôme . From here the route led up to Buis and overcame its steepest and most scenic section.
On its course, the railway crossed the Ouvèze several times, most recently between Buis and Pierrelongue in the form of an imposing viaduct by Alexandre Gustave Eiffel . The other bridges were ordinary stone bridges. Because of the wide valley of the Ouvèze, hardly any tunnels were necessary.
In total, the route was 49.94 kilometers long, overcame about 300 meters in altitude and thus had an average gradient of six per thousand. In the local situation it was partly laid out as a tram in the street area. These passages were a bottleneck on the route and accidents were not uncommon.
vehicles
The following locomotives ran on the route: Numbers 3993–3998 and numbers 1108–1111. After the train traffic on the line ended, two cars were sold to the Chemin de fer de la baie de Somme.
remains
- The tunnel des Trois Rivières is now used as a road tunnel on the road from Crestet to Mollans-sur-Ouvèze , which mostly runs on the railway line .
- The Tunnel de la Cave partly serves as a wine cellar. Immediately opposite was the largest viaduct on the line, of which only the two bridge heads have been preserved.
- At the former Pierrelongue station you can also see a former bridge, the function of which is no longer traceable today (see right picture). Another former bridge is located near Mollans-sur-Ouvèze.