Mulhouse tram

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tram
Mulhouse tram
image
Basic information
Country France
city Mulhouse
opening May 20, 2006
operator Soléa
Infrastructure
Route length 16.2 km
Gauge 1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system 750 V DC overhead line
Stops 29
Long-distance train stations 1
business
Lines 3 (+ 1 ( Tram-Train ) )
Clock in the peak hours 5-6 min
vehicles Alstom Citadis 302
Siemens Avanto
statistics
Passengers 60,000 per day (2009)
Network plan

The Mulhouse tram ( French : Tramway de Mulhouse ) ran between 1882 and 1960 in the French city of Mulhouse (Mulhouse). In May 2006, a new tram company opened in the Alsatian city, which now comprises three lines in the city network. In December 2010, the Mulhouse – Vallée de la Thur tram-train , a dual-system regional light rail system based on the Karlsruhe model , was also implemented.

Meter-gauge operation from 1882 to 1960

Mühlhausen – Ensisheim – Wittenheim (SMEW) steam tram at the terminus at Hohle Berg

Mulhouse already had a meter-gauge tram from 1882 to 1960 . Operated electrically since July 23, 1894, steam locomotives had previously been used. Two overland routes, opened between 1885 and 1888, led to the northern towns of Ensisheim (16 kilometers) and Wittenheim (eight kilometers). In Ensisheim, from September 1907, there was an option to switch to a narrow-gauge railway operated by the Reichseisenbahnen in Alsace-Lorraine to Colmar . With the connection in Ensisheim, the Mulhouse network had a temporary connection to a network of narrow-gauge railways, at the center of which were the overland routes of the Strasbourg tram . In 1914 the connection from Ensisheim to Colmar was converted to standard gauge as a result of the First World War , since the main line Colmar – Mulhouse was under French fire. In 1912, nine steam locomotives, 32 electric railcars, 56 sidecars for passengers and 147 freight cars were available for operation.

In 1934, the tram network in Mulhouse reached its greatest expansion with a length of 46 kilometers. At that time, in addition to the two suburban lines electrified in 1929, five inner-city tram lines were running. After the Second World War , the network was gradually discontinued. The inner-city tram lines - always operated only with two-axle vehicles - last operated in 1955. The overland operation, in which four-axle railcars were also used, was able to hold up until 1957.

Freight traffic on the tram network was of particular importance in Mulhouse . Spinning mills and weaving mills in the local textile industry received their coal by tram from the port on the Rhine-Rhône Canal . Rolling wagons were used to transport standard-gauge railroad freight cars. In 1934, diesel locomotives replaced the steam locomotives that were initially used . Freight transport - shifted to the roads in 1960 - was a business area of ​​the transport companies until 1979.

trolleybus

In addition to the tram, the Mülhausen urban railway , a forerunner of modern trolleybuses , was used to develop the vineyard from July 1907 . The tram did not seem suitable as a means of transport for this residential area on the hills in the south of the city. This so-called "trackless railway" was stopped again on July 14, 1918 after a fire destroyed the car hall and all vehicles. Between 1947 and 1968 a trolleybus operation existed again, which took over part of the transport services previously provided by the tram.

Reintroduction of the tram

Line 1 train at the junction at Porte Jeune
An Avanto of the two-system light rail Tram-Train next to a Citadis tram vehicle
The route network opened in 2006

From 1991 in Mulhouse the reintroduction of a public transport system on its own route was discussed. Initially, an O-bus system was up for debate. Under the impression of the Karlsruhe model , plans developed for a tram-train , a link between railway and tram routes. The focus of the considerations was the Lutterbach – Kruth railway line in the north-west of Mulhouse. The Alsace region - responsible for regional rail transport since 1997 - presented a feasibility study for a city-regional train project in October 2000. The modernization of this railway line had already started in 1997. 30 million euros were invested in the renewal of the tracks, platforms and stations, a modern signaling system and the construction of an additional turnout in Willer-sur-Thur . Since December 2000, modern diesel multiple units of type X 73500 have been running on the route , sometimes every 20 minutes during rush hour .

The "Syndicat Intercommunal des Transports de l'Agglomération Mulhousienne" (SITRAM), a municipal association exclusively for public transport, is responsible for the tram and the inner-city part of the tram-train . SITRAM belong to 24 municipalities with 235,000 inhabitants and an area of ​​253 square kilometers. The local authority association commissioned a feasibility study that was published in April 1999. The route network was established two years later, and construction of the city network began at the end of 2002.

Normal gauge operation from 2006

On May 13, 2006, an 11½ kilometer long basic network consisting of two lines went into operation. French President Jacques Chirac was present for the official opening a week later . The bus routes were gradually aligned with the tram routes by the beginning of July. The subsequent summer months with the holiday-related lower number of passengers served to optimize the new transport system.

Routes, operations and depots

The basic network consisted of two lines, the transition point of which was the four-track Porte Jeune stop . It comprised a total of 27  stops .

Line 1 was opened with a length of 4.3 kilometers in a north-south direction. On July 4, 2009, it was extended to the north by 1.5 kilometers and three stops. The new terminus is now Châtaignier in the Bourtzwiller district. At the previous northern terminus of Rattachement there is a connection to various urban and intercity bus routes. The southern end point of line 1 is the main train station , which is approached on a turning loop . In between, for example, are the Bourtzwiller stadium and the Cité de l'Automobile transport museum . The stop at the "Parc Expo" exhibition area is only used at trade fairs.

Line 2 connects the Coteaux development area in the south-west of Mulhouse with Nouveau Bassin , the location of a park-and-ride area on a motorway slip road. Intermediate stations on the 7.2 kilometer long line include the university and the sports palace.

Tram train train in Cernay station

On December 12, 2010, the Mulhouse – Vallée de la Thur tram train and a third tram line went into operation. Initially, only the line to Thann was electrified and used by dual-system trams; diesel operation will continue on the section in the upper Thur Valley. In Lutterbach , the SNCF's electricity system with 25 kilovolt 50 Hertz alternating current is switched to the tram system with 750 volts direct current. From Lutterbach, a four-kilometer-long, partly single-track tram line was built parallel to the railway line from Mulhouse to Colmar , which joins the existing line 2 at Rond-point Stricker . The trains from Thann run in the city network via Port Jeune to the forecourt of the main station. Overall, the tram-train route is 22 kilometers long; 15.5 kilometers of this are on the existing railway line.

The tram depot was built near the exhibition site on the site of an existing facility for buses. The articulated trams are parked outdoors.

During rush hour , tram lines 1 and 2 operate every six minutes. During the day, the clock is thinned to 7½ minutes and late in the evening and Sunday mornings to 30 minutes, then with hunt groups in all four directions. The tram-train runs between Mulhouse and Thann every half hour Monday to Saturday and every hour on Sunday. Line 3 also runs between Lutterbach and the main train station, doubling the number of trips. During rush hour, the Transport express régional (TER) railcars continue to run from Mulhouse via Thann to Kruth .

layout

As in other French cities, the construction of the new tram in Mulhouse was viewed as part of a larger urban design project. Particular emphasis was placed on embedding the tram route in the surroundings and the artistic design. 80 percent of line 2 runs as grass track , around 1,000 trees have been planted along the lines. The German artist Tobias Rehberger was hired to design Line 1 . Its installations refer to the surroundings of the stops, at the Grand Rex station it refers to the numerous cinemas that used to be there . The French sculptor Daniel Buren marked the stops on Line 2 with eight-meter-high, colored steel arches to which the overhead lines are attached.

vehicles

After Utrecht borrowed tram cars in the local Workshop
View of the interior of an articulated vehicle

27 Citadis 302 low-floor articulated vehicles are used in the city ​​network . The trains are 32.5 meters long, 2.65 meters wide and 3.3 meters high. You have 64 seats and 175 standing places. The maximum permitted speed is 70 kilometers per hour. Power is supplied via a 750 volt overhead contact line . The basic network, which went into operation in 2006, initially only requires 15 trains; For economic reasons, however, all 27 vehicles required for the planned city network were procured. Two trains of the Mulhouse tram are temporarily on loan to Buenos Aires , another was on the way in Utrecht , and another five vehicles were handed over to Melbourne .

The basic color of the outer car body is yellow, the individual vehicles are provided with different red or black geometric motifs. The population was able to vote on the design in September 2003; the front section of Citadis trains differs from the manufacturer's normal versions. The announcement of the stops in the vehicles is made alternately by a female and a male voice and is introduced by motifs contributed by the French composer Pierre Henry .

For the tram-train connection into the Thur Valley , the French state railway SNCF ordered twelve two-system light rail vehicles of the Avanto type from the manufacturer Siemens Transportation Systems . The SNCF has been using this type of vehicle on line 4 of the Paris tram since 2006 . The railcars were delivered from 2009 and are housed in the tram depot on the exhibition grounds. With a length of 36.4 meters and a width of 2.65 meters, they offer 85 seats and 146 standing places. The maximum speed is 100 kilometers per hour. The blue-silver-gray color scheme of the railcars corresponds to the color scheme of the TER; the geometric motifs of the Ciatadis trains were adopted. Four of the twelve railcars are required for the regular operation of the route into the Thur Valley.

financing

For the lines that went into operation in 2006, the depot and the vehicles - if necessary for the basic network - investments of 250 million euros were assumed in advance. This budget was somewhat undercut. Completion of the entire city network is expected to cost a further 90 million euros. This is 17.3 million euros per kilometer, which is below average in comparison with other French cities.

In the case of the tram-train connection to the Thur Valley, it was initially assumed that 90 million euros would cover the entire route. In the planning phase there were cost increases, so that the section to Thann cost a good 84 million euros. The twelve Avanto trains operated by SNCF require additional investments of almost 53 million euros.

The main source of financing is the versement transport , a transport tax levied in the transport area by all employers with more than nine employees. The amount of the tax is set by the local authority, in Mulhouse with 1.4% of the wage bill, the maximum limit of 1.75% is not exhausted. In addition, SITRAM took out loans to finance investments. In the basic network, which was opened in 2006, the French state paid around 30 percent of the investment costs, while lower grants came from the Alsace region and the Haut-Rhin department . In the meantime, the state has withdrawn from financing the infrastructure, which is leading to delays in further expansion.

Planned route extensions for the Mulhouse trams (in blue); Planning status 2009

Balance sheet and further expansion

In November 2008, 55,000 passengers per day were counted on both tram lines, 17 percent more than a year earlier. For the entire local transport network in Mulhouse, 103,400 passengers per day are given; this corresponds to an increase of 25 percent in two years.

According to the original plans, the city network was to receive two route extensions: Line 2 was to be extended in the east from Nouveau Bassin by three stations to Jonquilles in the independent town of Riedisheim . Line 1 was to reach the city of Wittenheim in the north via Kingersheim , with eight new stops being planned. This route was to be built partly on a single track and only be used by every second train on Line 1. For financial reasons, however, these extensions have not yet been made. Instead, there has been a Metrobus line on the planned extension of Line 1 since autumn 2013 .

literature

  • Jörg Framenau: A tram-train system for Mulhouse (Mühlhausen [sic] in Alsace). In: Stadtverkehr , Issue 3/2002 (47th year), ISSN  0038-9013 , pp. 10-18.
  • Stefan Göbel: Mulhouse tram in operation. In: Stadtverkehr , Issue 6/2006 (51st year), ISSN  0038-9013 , pp. 16-21.
  • Stefan Göbel: Mulhouse: First “real” tram train opened in France. In: Stadtverkehr , issue 3/2011 (56th year), ISSN  0038-9013 , pp. 31–34.

Web links

Commons : Mulhouse Tram  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ For the history, see Framenau, Tram-Train-System , p. 11f., Göbel, Straßenbahn , p. 18f. Suburban routes with Hans Kobschätzky: Route atlas of the German railways 1893–1935. Alba Buchverlag, Düsseldorf, 1975, p. 49
  2. ↑ Erhard Born: The Alsatian-Central Baden narrow-gauge network. In: Erhard Born (collaborator): Narrow gauge between the Vosges and the Black Forest. Self-published, Schwäbisch Gmünd 1972, ISBN 3-9800014-0-7 , p. 19ff.
  3. ↑ Framenau, Tram-Train-System , p. 12ff.
  4. ↑ Figures in Göbel, Straßenbahn , p. 16
  5. ↑ Göbel, Mulhouse , p. 31
  6. ↑ Nouvelles lignes 3 et tram-train ouvertes aux voyageurs ( Memento of the original from December 26, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at www.solea.info, accessed January 20, 2011 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.solea.info
  7. ↑ Göbel, Mulhouse , p. 32
  8. ↑ Göbel, Mulhouse , p. 32
  9. ↑ Brief message in Stadtverkehr , issue 3/2009, p. 52
  10. ↑ For the implementation of the plans see Göbel, Mulhouse , p. 34; for the details of the planning: Göbel, tram , p. 20f.