What is a "secondary" railway ?A definition by Trains-fr.org
The word "secondary" looks old fashioned and depreciatory today. So-called "secondary" railways were lines which were built from the 1860s on independently from the "réseau principal" operated by larger companies or the state (See SNCF). It is to be noted that they were called "Chemins de Fer Vicinaux" in Belgium, which gives a better definition of their links with the State than the French word. They were often exploited by a private company on behalf of a local authority such as a département or a town. As Régions had no legal existence at the time, they couldn't own a railway. These lines were built according to less stringent regulations than main ones.
They were not designed for speed although some were built in the standard gauge; most were metric or even sub-metric -using the 60cm gauge- and had steep gradients and sharp curves, which were only fit for light rolling stock or tramways. They were called the "Tortillards" as the lines wound their ways in the countryside and the nickname remained as an endearing feature for enthusiasts and as a symbol of slow inneficiency for the general public who forgot too easily what these railways had done for local prosperity at first and how useful they had been during the dark years of the war and post-war era. History repeats itself and the present day issues concerning regional transport and the re-introduction of tramways in towns clearly show that members of the FACS are not grown-up babies playing with life-size scale models but people who promote modern, efficient and useful means of transport while helping to preserve as much of our industrial heritage as possible.
Foreword.To the difference of other European countries like Great Britain and Germany, the "secondary" network that was built in France at the end of the 19th century was mostly narrow gauge. The big companies also had their "secondary" lines but few small companies used the standard gauge.
We need not re-open the debate between the supporters of the standard gauge and the others in the 1880s. Let us say that the narrow gauge, mostly metric, put its unmistakeable mark on rural landscape, being intricately linked to the countriside and the villages. These light railways were very picturesque because of the charm and variety of landscapes, tracks, bridges, tunnels and rolling stock. Our study will mainly deal with the main narrow gauge railways, without forgetting that SNCF branch and local lines were being dismantled or closed at the same time.
A survey of French railways in 1957: many lines have already been closed.When the FACS was created in 1957, many metric or sub-metric lines had already disappeared. Most independent railways or branch lines had been closed for two main reasons, the first one being that many lines had been disused between 1918 and 1939 because they were obsolete or didn't answer local needs any longer. Buses and even cars had taken over and lorries were now considered - rightly or not, this is not for us to decide - as a more adequate, cheaper and more "modern" means for the transport of goods. The other main reason was the second World War which had direct and indirect consequences for railways.
The obvious direct consequence of the war being the destruction of tracks, bridges and equipment that seemed too expensive to be replaced at the time. This was the case for lines such as the Chemin de Fer du Calvados on 60cm track, the Nice-Meyrargues line of the Chemin de Fer de Provence or the Cazamozza-Porto Vecchio of the CFD de Corse.
Many railways were disused as a side-effect of the war: Most lines in the north of France, the CFD des Charentes, du Finistère, the Provence railway between Toulon and StRaphaël, the Dordogne network, the la Voute-sur-Loire to Raucoules-Brossettes line of the CFD du Vivarais. Even modernized lines like StBrieux-Painpol - the last line in the département of Côtes du Nord - and the TIV lines around Rennes in Brittany and the La Cure-Morez French section of the Swiss Nyon - StCergue - La Cure line were closed.
These lines disappeared because tracks were in bad repair or had been built alongside main roads. Although their rolling stock was often worn out there were some exceptions like the recent ABH Renault railcars of the Côtes du Nord and the articulated Brissonneau & Lotz on the CP du Var. However all railroads suffered from the unfair competition of roads and were often criticized by local authorities which objected to massive investments in railways.
The State and local councils followed the easiest short-term policy by transferring passenger and goods traffic to roads instead of funding the modernization of railways. Roads and road vehicles were cheaper, at least in the short run. Besides it still seems legally and politically easier to grant road services to numerous road operators than tocontrol a railway on a larger than local basis.
But some lines were still in operation...Despitemany closures some networks and lines had survived when the FACS was born in 1957 because they were either well-maintained, well-structured or well-run. Among these were:
The Réseau Breton, The P.O.C (Corrèze), The CFD Vivarais and an isolated branch in Ardèche, the Nice-Digne line from the Chemins de Fer de Provence, the Corsican network - without the Porto Vecchio line - the Tarn line, the Clémont-Buzançais section of the Blanc Argent, the "sea bathing" network of the Somme, the StGervais-Vallorcine SNCF line and finally the Cerdagne line "le Train Jaune".
Other lines survived because they answered local needs or were very specific:
The La Mûre railway (a colliery line), the Voies Ferrées du Dauphiné - Vizille-Livet - (goods only), several rack and pinion railways like La Rhûne, the Tramway du Mont Blanc, the Montenvers railway, the Cauterets-La Raillere - a watering place -, the Laon tramway with rack emergency braking, the Crémaillère de Langres, the Crémaillère and "ficelles" (cable cars) in Lyons and, last but not least, the départemental network in the island of La Réunion.
Some lines disappeared soon afterwards: Arles-Salins de Giraud (1957-58), Denain-Caudry (1960), Montereau-Egreville (1959) and StJust-en-Chaussée to Froissy in 1961.
Some standard gauge small networks resisted closure because they had original features; most were either owned or controlled by département authorities like the StQuentin-Guise in the Aisne and the networks of the Landes, Gironde, Hérault, Bouches du Rhône among others .
Rolling stock in those times.The very origin of French light railways was responsible for excessive diversity of features, therefore few companies had compatible rolling stock.. There was a wide range of loading gauges, couplings, buffer sizes and above all of braking systems. Steam had ruled unchallenged until the early 30s, then railcars had started replacing passenger trains and steam engines had been restricted to goods or market-day trains except for a temporary come-back during war years.
It is to be noted that while some railways had introduced modern railcars as early as 1935 - The C.F.D used Billard railcars on their Corse, Charentes, Dordogne and Vivarais lines and the C.P ran Renault and Brissonneau & Lotz on theirs - others, among which the Réseau Breton, only introduced them after the war. Diesel engines were seldom used to haul goods trains. TWO railways bought new Diesel engines: The Var et Provence as early as 1935 and the Deux Sèvres introduced Brissonneau & Lotz Diesel-electric engines some years later, although railcar builders displayed imagination and what we would now call adaptability by offering vehicles that could meet the requirements of each railway although they were derived from almost identical types.
This policy was followed by De Dion Bouton, Billard, Renault, Brissonneau & Lotz before the second World War. Some series were even improved and supplied after the war like the Renault ABH for the Provence railway on its alpine lines - the first ones being produced in 1935 and the last ones in 1946 - Some ABH were produced for the Côtes du Nord in 1948, for Corsica in 1949 and for some French colonies - Indochina and North Africa - as late as 1955.
Billard, which had produced many railcars before the war, later confined itself to Spanish and Greek railways or the département of La Réunion, with the exception of three far too classical carriages for the Provence railway in 1955.
Four companies produced new railcars in the 1945 - 1957 period:
The only truly distinctive production at the time was a joint order to Brissonneau & Lotz for ten 600HP BoBo Diesel-electric engines: The CP and VFD had ordered four each and the Corsican railway two.
Bodies and couplings were particular to each company, so there were front doors for the CP but no doors for VFD and Corsica. These engines were to experience very different careers; One of them was transferred from Provence to Corsica, a VFD engine was bought by the Swiss CF du Jura. The Provence engine is the only survivor, the Jura one having broken down.
We cannot end this study without mentioning the fact that some sub-metric railways -70, 60, 50 cm gauge lines - were still doing well in 1957: The forest line at Abreschviller, the beet-root carrying railways at Pithiviers, Maizy, Coucy... Many other lines set up in quarries like the one at Nemours, or for the carrying of sand, clay, slate, tiles or coal had not been closed yet. Others which had been laid for the building of hydro-electric dams and plants in the Alps and Pyrenées were still busy as well.
1957/1970 · Fast-vanishing hopes.The friends of light railways and tramways that created the FACS in 1957 could still enjoy their passion for trains on many lines although most tramways had disappeared - see Raymond Duquenne's article in CFRU n°260 - and they did enjoy it thoroughly!
Following the pioneering work of the AFAC, they introduced the younger generations to the world of so-called "secondary" lines that used to be the life and blood of whole regions or départements: Brittany, Corrèze, Vivarais, Somme, and other almost forgotten and remote railways among which the beet-root and sugar factory lines. They wrote about them in their newsletters and got the newly-born TV and the older media to give what coverage they could to their preservation work.
Local authorities and the government seemed to admit that there had been enough closures and that the remaining lines should be modernized and kept in operation. Unfortunately, there were too many administrative bodies in chargeof these lines. The State controlled the Vivarais, Provence and Corsican lines, the SNCF was in charge of POB, RB and BA and Département authorities presided over the future of Tarn and Isère lines. There was wishful thinking and sympathy on all sides but no clear policy...
Steam-hauled goods trains were still the rule on the Réseau Breton, the Vivarais and Corrèze and a timid attempt at cutting costs was made when three 414HP BoBo Diesel engines with asynchronous transmission were ordered from the CFD works in Montmirail. The first one was sent to the Vivarais and the other two to POC in 1963. A fourth shunter was built for Corsica in 1966 but the Réseau Breton was still waiting in vain. Although these engines lacked power for lines with steep gradients, they proved very valuable and their modern look, which was not unlike that of the SNCF Diesels of the time, gave some much-needed confidence to the railwaymen of the lines on which they ran, who could think they were not forgotten. Track maintenance and repairs were also undertaken at that time and our magazine duly reported these welcome tokens of hope.
These new Diesels could be seen in operation along with steam engines and shunters that had been built by the railways themselves in their workshops or in those of better equipped companies almost exclusively from chassis of 060 steam engines. Some of these shunters also hauled trains on the Lozère and B.A lines.
The uncommonly tough ABH Renault railcars on Provence railway were also modernized by replacing their original engines with new Poyaud Diesels. Meanwhile, the closure of lines was resumed in France: Arles-Salins de Giraud in 1958,
The then FACS member and present day president of COPEF, Mr Sylvain Zalkind, published a 16-page report about light railways in the early months of 1967. He showed in a conclusive way with examples taken from other European countries that the metric track could be modern and efficient. Mr Zalkind aptly committed himself to the defence of the Vivarais and Lozère railways that were under attack later that year. His report was widely circulated among ministries, local authorities, and the media.
Although people in Brittany showed little interest in their railways - there's only one touristic railway in the Côtes d'Armor in 1997 and it opened but recently - people in Ardèche were "brave hearts" as the saying goes. The mayor and Conseiller Général at Le Cheylard set up a defence committee of the local railway on 26 november 1967. Too late... The Réseau Breton was closed on 30 september 1968, although the Carhaix-Guingamp line was widened to standard gauge and the Guingamp-Paimpol line was kept in operation. The Lozère railway was discontinued on 31 march 1968 and the Vivarais railway on 1 november of the same year. The Vivarais was partially saved later by devoted members of the FACS.
A little sunshine forced its way through the overcast skies of metric railways when a new 15-year lease was granted to the Société Auxiliaire des Chemins de Fer Secondaires in Corsica. The same company had already run the Tarn railway in an efficient and economical way. The Corsican lease was published in a 10-page bill in the Journal Officiel de la République Française on 29 may 1965 which in itself is worth being included in an anthology... At least, there was some hope for Corsica!
So I wrote in the 2nd 1968 issue of our magazine - n°68 - that "only eight metric railways of some importance were left in France.". These railways were: - The P.O Corrèze: 95 km - Steam and Diesel engines + railcars.
Small isolated but well-known lines like the Crémaillère de Langres, the Cauterets tramway and the larger ELRT StEtienne tramway and n°68 Marseilles line have been omitted from this survey.
The "closure epidemic" went relentlessly on and some of the above lines were doomed: Passenger traffic stopped in 1969 and goods traffic was discontinued in 1970 on P.O. Corrèze. The Somme railway came next : the "Bains de Mer" branch at Le Crotoy closed in 1969 and the StValery - Cayeux branch followed in 1972. This line was later preserved by dedicated friends of railways.
Very few changes have taken place since then: The Blanc-Argent operated a shorter line and goods traffic was discontinued at La Mure. The Provence line was badly damaged by a landslide on 2 november 1994 and traffic had to stop for more than a year which could have brought forth the closure of the railway. This did not happen, however.
What rolling stock for these lines?We noticed that no new rolling stock was introduced on metric railways apart from the Verney railcars of the P.O.C. and the three ABH Renault of the Côtes du Nord railway that, incidentally, were later used in Spain. Most lines were operated with pre-war Billard or De Dion-Bouton or "home-made" railcars which were indefatigable but rather old fashioned... Some of them wandered from railway to railway when closures occurred.
In the above mentioned n°68 newsletter I emphasized the necessity for a complete renewal of the rolling stock and the definition of a modern and standardized railcar that would meet the requirements of a fairly narrow market. I even dared state what it should be like: " It is now obvious that this railcar must take the following requirements into account if it is to be built. On the one hand, this railcar must incorporate the new technology used on standard gauge vehicles: Bogies, a standard Diesel engine located under the floor, electric or at least modern mechanical or hydraulic transmission, two driving cabs, a comfortable passenger compartment with good-sized windows.
On the other hand, this railcar must answer the requirements of the narrow gauge: A very low centre of gravity, efficient bogies and suspension to overcome poor track layout, a 200-300HP engine with easy access for maintenance, a maximum speed of 90/100 Km/h but with good accelerating power. It should also be able to haul a metallic carriage, accomodate 30/40 passengers and have a luggage bay. Any shape would do provided it was compatible with the type of body structure selected. A simple shape like the 425 HP SNCF or the renewed Corsican railcar would be adequate. A good designer would later be able to customize each vehicle with the colour features of each railway."
The large number of railway owners and operators led to no such joint definition and order of railcars. This situation was not unlike what had happened before the war in the USA with the P.C.C.
The Chemins de Fer de Provence were the first to put an order for railcars from the CFD. They became operational in january 1972. These 330HP railcars had good qualities - modern design and adequate power - but serious defects as well - poor aspect, bad accessibility and no luggage bay. We were the first to publish plans and technical data as early as 1970 and, being from Nice, I was very enthusiastic in my writings about the new impetus these railcars would bring to the Provence railway. Two slightly improved units were soon added to the others.
The CFD works used the experience they had acquired from the Provence rolling stock to produce five much improved and more railway-like railcars for Corsica. They proved efficient but contrary to the older ABH Renault, they were slightly under-powered to climb the Vizzavona pass in the wintry snow.
The Provence railway ordered two railcars of the same type in 1977 and the Blanc-Argent had two others built by Socofer. A breakthrough was to be made when a comfortable and climatized twin railcar was ordered in 1984 but the railway and local authorities asked the builder, the Soulé works, for many changes and required the bodies to be built locally at the Garnero works so that the end product was much less satisfactory than expected. Legal strife followed, which was damageable to all parties concerned. This railcar twin unit, despite being very modern, suffered from frequent breakdowns and was often seen drawn by another engine like standard carriages! It is now fully operational again. Soulé, which had become CFD-Industrie, made three new railcars and three carriages on the same pattern for Corsica from 1989 on. They are doing very well on Ajaccio-Bastia.
These railcars proved so satisfactory that the SNCF ordered two others, with more powerful Cummins engines, and a carriage. They were delivered on 7 june last year in Bastia. The SNCF was asked by the Corsican Regional authority to take over from the SACFS which had gone bankrupt in 1982. The future of railways in Corsica now looks much brighter. Companies made financial efforts to modernize their rolling stock. The SACFS invested in the refurbishing of the Corsican Billard in 1968, the Blanc-Argent modernized its Verneys and the Provence railway its ABH. The Bastia and Nice stations were both rebuilt although on a smaller size, and the Corsican railway built new workshops at Cazamozza while the C.P built their own at Colomars.
Our readers will no doubt be interested in the articles about these engines which were published in our magazine over the last forty years. The comprehensive and sometimes critical studies by Pascal Bejui in "Les Chemins de Fer de la Corse" (La Régordane Ed.) as well as José Banaudo's "Le Siècle du Train des Pignes" (Le Cabri Ed.) and G. Nickson and E. Martin's "Le Chemin de Fer du Blanc-Argent" (Le Cabri Ed.) are worth reading. The 5-book series "Les Petits Trains de Jadis" is also published by Le Cabri.
New Franco-Swiss modern and expensive trains were introduced on Le Fayet to Martigny in 1997. As they required a lot of adjustment we hope they'll prove satisfactory in the long run...
The CP have been looking for a new operator since may 1997. The Provence railway may order new railcars when the new lease is signed, provided subsidies are found. The Languedoc-Roussillon regional authorities might help the SNCF to run modern touristic trains on the Cerdagne line and there are talks about modernizing the Blanc-Argent too. Wait and see...
Let's make things clear!Our passion for trains in general and light railways in particular shouldn't make us overlook some hard facts about the world we live in. Here are some very unpleasant ones covering the same period as this article - 1957 to 1997 -
These charts show the evolution of road and railway traffic since 1956. The number of cars has been multiplied by nine and that of lorries and vans by five. The number of buses and coaches rose until 1985 and has been decreasing ever since, which clearly shows the problem lies with public transport.
A well-organized motorway network which required costly investments has been built alongside a dense road system in very good repair. These motorways have reached the heart of the Alps and Massif Central, they are about to invade the Pyrenees...
Our national and local political and administrative leaders have virtually no faith in railways, or had none until 1980. Some regions have very discreetly changed their minds since then.
How can light railways hope to survive in a country that puts so much faith in cars and in which the SNCF itself neglects small or even regional lines because it is only interested in the TGV? No wonder French people are not attracted by railways!
Let's take one example out of a hundred to illustrate this. If you live in Digne and want to go to Lyons, Paris or farther still, then you must drive to StAuban and change trains at Marseilles or Grenoble. Once you're comfortably seated in your car, why not remain in it and take the nearby motorway? If the waters of many small streams finally make large rivers, then small lines are the life and blood of main ones. Many people in authority seem to have forgotten this obvious fact.
The same can be said about freight. Road transport offers a flexible door-to-door service with which the SNCF cannot compete, but does the SNCF really want to challenge lorries, that's another question. Are the Swiss irresponsible and inarticulate in the field of economics? Obviously not so, yet they kept many branch lines. Our readers can find many economic articles in which the costs of roads and rail are compared. The real cost of road transport, if you take into account road building and maintenance, health problems, the environment and quality of life, etc, is often underestimated by local and national authorities.
EpilogueThis overview of 40 years of local light railways leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. Let's make things perfectly clear: some lines had no economic justification as they were far away from large activity centres even though they were picturesque. The tramways of Corrèze, the Lozère railway and some others fall into that category although some of you will, no doubt, disagree with me on this point.
Some lines could have escaped closure if they had been run in a very different way and with less stringent regulations. A larger support from local authorities, a closer co-operation with passengers and trade unions would have been necessary.
Other lines could have been modernized to avoid "road only" traffic like the Chemins de Fer des Côtes du Nord, the Var railway -Toulon to StRaphaël - the Provence network and a few others which were close to big urban centres.
Let's be realistic: track layouts would often have had to be modified. Take the Toulon-StRaphaël as an example: the track was laid right through villages or along roads and houses, which would have required costly by-passes, tunnels, cuttings or bridges. Would planners have thought a similar new road system too expensive? France is lagging behind Switzerland and Italy as far as railway preservation is concerned.
What future for the last metric gauge railways? Road congestion, the new concern for ecology and tourism should allow them not only to be preserved but also modernized and developed. It would require a strong commitment in favour of railways from local authorities and a willingness from citizens to be less addicted to their cars.
The come-back of tramways in some towns is a very positive step. Let's hope local railways will benefit from this trend.
© Paul Carenco, secretary of FACS-UNECTO
PS : · I only dealt in this article with railways which were rescued by realistic enthusiasts who devoted their technical or managerial knowledge to their passion for trains. Our honorary president Mr René Hulot mentioned this in n° 260 of our magazine.
We can only know - or discover for the younger among us - what metric lines were like more than half a century ago thanks to the work of the volunteers from the Vivarais, Baie de Somme, GECP, Valmondois, Pithiviers... and of all those, anywhere, who try to recapture the spirit and life of local lines, be they 60, 70 or standard gauge. Let them all be thanked here for their work.
My most sincere thanks to Jacques Rossetti and Frédéric Duffetrelle who proof-read this article.