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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 26, 2021 15:48:40 GMT
This is only of marginal interest and even more so since the tram line in question goes into suburbs which interest practically no visitors. Even I had rarely been out that way, mostly on excursions to the food wholesaler back when we had the café. However, the bus line that the tram has just replaced had the highest ridership of any bus line in the suburbs, so clearly something needed to be done. It just started service two weeks ago and has the particularity of being the first tram line operated by a private company in Paris rather than the usual RATP. Don't worry, it is integrated into the ticketing and travel pass system, so this doesn't affect users at all. The company is not a little startup. It already operates public transportation in Bordeaux and Lyon among other French cities. It also operates the buses of Stockholm and Las Vegas, the commuter rail services of Boston, the automated subway of Hyderabad, the light rail of Manchester and the subway of Shanghai. So they know what they are doing. It is a joint venture between the SNCF (French national railways - 70%) and 30% by the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. It starts from Porte de Choisy in Paris, pretty much the heart of Chinatown, which spreads south into the suburbs.
The parking tracks are along the tram 3a line.
One of the first things I noticed was the ceiling lighting which indicates on which side to exit. I've seen this in other countries (Singapore) but not yet in Paris.
Also every single seat has a charging station for electronic equipment.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 26, 2021 16:00:52 GMT
One of the first sights along the line is the corporate headquarters of Tang Frères, the large Chinese supermarket chain (although the Tangs are Laotian). I have never been to this particular store but now that the tram goes there, I feel a need to visit it. Another must is the MacVAL, the regional museum of modern art. I have been wanting to visit for years, but it was inconvenient without a car. Musée d' Art Contemporain du Val de Marne (department 94 in France) At the roundabout of the intersection, there is a sculpture to make sure that you don't miss the turn. All along the boulevard, everything has been widened and repaved. I like how they have bordered the tram line. They don't use flowers for that inside Paris.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 26, 2021 16:16:21 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 26, 2021 16:23:46 GMT
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 26, 2021 16:38:35 GMT
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Post by htmb on Apr 26, 2021 16:46:21 GMT
What a delightful little trip. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I am so jealous!
Is this meant to be a direct route to the airport at Orly?
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 26, 2021 17:00:01 GMT
No, it will never go to the airport which is more than 5 km away. Orly airport is already served by the Orlybus and tram T7 and will be connected to Paris by metro line 14 in a few years. Metro line 18 will also go there a few years later, but from Nanterre and Versailles.
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Post by bjd on Apr 26, 2021 18:10:38 GMT
Thanks for this trip to a place I have never had a reason to go to. And you answered my airport question too. I have always thought trams were a good way to get around, and all these new lines in France keep them out of the traffic so they are quite fast compared to buses, as well as less polluting.
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Post by kerouac2 on Apr 26, 2021 18:23:36 GMT
Actually, the people in the area really wanted the line to go all the way to the airport but only because quite a few people work at the airport or in the cargo zones there. Nobody would ever expect air passengers to take that line, just as very few take the T7 to the airport.
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Post by fumobici on Apr 26, 2021 20:33:52 GMT
Looks like a pleasant hour or two. Inevitable airport question dispensed with, reminds me a bit of the tram in Nice, and why wouldn't it?
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Post by tod2 on Apr 27, 2021 7:59:53 GMT
That was magic Kerouac! The effort with the tulips and other eye-pleasing efforts makes it such a lovely place to live. The buildings are wonderfully "street art" free for the moment. I hope it stays that way and a designated place is left for the aerosol crew to spray to their hearts content. Apart from having my camera stolen on the tram, I love this mode of transport.
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Post by patricklondon on Apr 27, 2021 11:39:43 GMT
Fascinating.I"ve never tried a tram in Paris. Obviously I should broaden my horizons if and when travel restrictions are lifted. There's one tramway line in the outer southern suburbs of London connecting with a number of the commuter lines radiating from the city centre, which is handy for residents, but not particularly interesting to anyone else, I suspect. My blog | My photos | My video clips | My Librivox recordings"too literate to be spam"
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Post by tod2 on Apr 27, 2021 14:09:03 GMT
Oh Patrick you haven't lived daaaaarlimg! It is 10 times better than any metro ride because you are travelling past restaurants, hotels, and housing in the smoothest of manners. Well I think so.
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Post by patricklondon on Apr 27, 2021 16:11:08 GMT
It is 10 times better than any metro ride because you are travelling past restaurants, hotels, and housing in the smoothest of manners. Well I think so. Certainly true of the trams in most of the European cities I've been to, but I was talking about Croydon. And Mitcham.
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Post by tod2 on Apr 27, 2021 17:38:25 GMT
You got me there. Never been on a tram in UK EXCEPT for Blackpool. Other trams that come to mind for me are Amsterdam and Mullhouse.
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Post by lugg on Apr 27, 2021 19:52:08 GMT
Interesting report K2 as ever ... Aha! Here is the main municipal building hiding off to the side. No 2 photo below - wow what a riot of colour. There's one tramway line in the outer southern suburbs of London connecting with a number of the commuter lines radiating from the city centre, which is handy for residents, but not particularly interesting to anyone else, I suspect That surprises me given the number of tram lines / light rail links to the north of London ..not just Blackpool, The ones I have travelled on are in Greater Manchester and Nottinghamshire . Smooth, fast and cheap in both cases .
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Post by patricklondon on Apr 28, 2021 11:46:23 GMT
At the risk of derailing (!) the thread, I think the difference between London and places like Manchester where trams have been re-introduced is that, in Manchester, they used them to replace existing commuter train services and to link them together through the city centre at street level. In London, the Underground had been connecting between rail termini for a long time, so it only made sense to think of new tram services in relatively less busy outer areas, where the Underground largely hadn't extended because the main-line rail companies had already been running suburban services for a few decades before the Underground came along. The old double-decker tram services in inner and central London were replaced by buses 60-odd years ago. My blog | My photos | My video clips | My Librivox recordings"too literate to be spam"
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