Réseau des Bains de Mer

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The Réseau des Bains de Mer system
km
uexKDSa
freight extns
uxKBFa
18 Cayeux Brighton-Plage
uSTR
uHST
16 Hurt
ueHSTR ueABZlg
WWII line to Ault
uexKDSr uCPICr
Lanchères-Pendé 13km
uSTR
uHST
11 Pendé-Routhiauville
uSTR
BHF KBFa
St. Valery Ville 7km /Quai 6km
ABZrg STRrf
WBRÜCKE
Somme Canal
STR uKBFa
7.47 Le Crotoy
exKDSr eCPICr uSTR
5.6 St. Valery Canal
STR uHST
Favières
exHLUECKE eABZlg uSTR
Ligne de 100 Jours
STR uHST
Morlay
STR uSTR
BHFr uABZdrl3 uxABZ3rf uexSTRlg
0 Noyelles sur Mer
exHBHF exABZ3lf exHSTR uexKRZo
SNCF Abbeville - Boulogne line
ueSTR
uexSTRrg ueHSTR uexSTRrf
ueSTR uexKBFa
25 Dompierre-sur-Authie
ueSTR uexHST
Wadicourt
uexBHF ueSTR
Sailly-Bray
ueSTR uexBHF
Crécy - Estrées
uexBHF ueSTR
Sailly-le-Sec
ueSTR uexBHF
Forêt du Crécy
uexBHF ueSTR
Nouvion-en-Ponthieu
ueSTR uexBHF
11 Forest l'Abbaye
uexSTRlf uexABZrf
uexBHF
Lamotte-Buleux
ueSTR
uexBHF
Canchy-Neuilly
ueSTR
uexHST
Plessiel-Drucat
uexBHF
Drucat
ueSTR
uexHST
Abbeville Porte du Bois
uexHST
Abbeville Porte Saint Gilles
uexKBFe
28 Abbeville (Nord)
HSTR
Dual gauge
exHSTR
Standard gauge
exHLUECKE
Standard gauge (closed)
uHSTR
Metre gauge
ueHSTR
Metre gauge (closed)

The Réseau des Bains de Mer (RBM) was a group of five metre gauge railways centred on Noyelles-sur-Mer, with a total route length of some 68 kilometres (42 mi). It was a part of the Chemins de fer départementaux de la Somme. Three of the lines are still open as the Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme heritage line, and are dealt with under that article. This article covers the other two lines, now closed. All the lines were in the Somme department.

The five lines were:-

Contents

[edit] Background

In France, the building of railways was controlled by the Government. This avoided the duplication of routes that was seen in the UK and meant that the large cities and towns were connected. The citizens of the smaller towns and villages also wanted railways to be built to connect them to the network. The departments were given authority to oversee the construction of these minor lines, some of which were built to standard gauge and others were built to metre gauge. The Réseau des Bains de Mer system came under the control of the Somme Department.

[edit] Freight.

The main freight carried was sugar beet and phosphates. Sugar beet was processsed at the raperie at Crécy-Estrées before being sent by rail to Lanchères-Pendé. This being the final traffic carried on this section of the RBM. Phosphates were mined at Forêt du Crécy and sent by rail to St. Valery.[2]

[edit] Noyelles - Forest-l'Abbaye.

This line was 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) long. Leaving Noyelles station, it climbed to cross the main Boulogne-Abbeville line. Stations were provided at Sailly-Bray, Sailly-le-Sec, Nouvion-en-Ponthieu and Forest-l'Abbaye, where there was a junction with the Abbeville-Dompierre line.

The line was opened on 24 August 1892, and closed to passengers on 10 March 1947. The line remained open for freight until 1 February 1951.[1][2] After closure, the line saw occasional use for freight until 1965.[3]

[edit] Stations

[edit] Noyelles-sur-Mer

A station was opened at Noyelles in 1847, being on the standard gauge line between Boulogne and Amiens. In 1858 a single track branch opened to St. Valery sur Somme. Metre gauge branches opened to Le Crotoy and Cayeux in 1887, the latter being laid between the rails of the standard gauge branch to St. Valery. The final line to be built to Noyelles was a metre gauge branch to Forest l'Abbaye which opened on 24 August 1892, and closed to passengers on 10 March 1947 and freight on 1 February 1951.[2]

[edit] Sailly-Bray

[edit] Sailly-le-Sec

A station served the village of Sailly-le-Sec.

[edit] Nouvion-en-Ponthieu

A station served the village of Nouvion-en-Ponthieu

  • Forest l'Abbaye station will be covered under the Abbeville-Dompierre line.

[edit] Abbeville - Dompierre

This line was 31 kilometres (19 mi) long. It ran from the Chemin de Fer du Nord station at Abbeville (North) to Dompierre-sur-Authie, with a junction at Forest-l'Abbaye with the line to Noyelles. There were stations at Abbeville Porte Saint Gilles, Abbeville Porte du Bois, Drucat, Plessiel-Drucat, Canchy-Neuilly, Lamotte-Buleux, Forest-l'Abbaye, Forêt du Crécy, Crécy-Estrées, Wadicourt and Dompierre-sur-Authie. There were plans to extend the line into the Pas de Calais department but the line was not built.[1]

The line served mainly small villages with little industry. It opened on 19 June 1892, and closed on 10 March 1947, except the section between Crécy and Forest-l'Abbaye, which remained open to freight until 1 February 1951.[2][4] The section north of Crécy to Dompierre-sur-Authie saw occasional use for freight until 1956. The section south of Forest-l'Abbaye to Canchy saw occasional use for freight until 1965.[3]

[edit] Stations

[edit] Abbeville (Nord)

Abbeville was the furthest station south, it was 28 kilometres (17 mi) from Noyelles and 31 kilometres (19 mi) from Dompierre-sur-Authie. [5]

[edit] Porte Saint Gilles

[edit] Porte du Bois

[edit] Drucat

This station served the village of Drucat.

[edit] Plessiel-Drucat

A halt served the hamlet of Le Plessiel, part of the Drucat commune.

[edit] Canchy-Neuilly

This station served the villages of Canchy and Neuilly-l'Hôpital.

[edit] Lamotte-Buleux

A station served the village of Lamotte-Buleux.

[edit] Forest-l'Abbaye

Forest-l'Abbaye was where the line from Noyelles joined the line between Abbeville and Dompierre-sur-Authie. It was 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) from Noyelles.

[edit] Forêt du Crécy

Phosphates were mined locally, and transported to St. Valery by rail.[2]

[edit] Crécy-Estrées

The station at Crécy.
The station at Crécy.

This station served the villages of Crécy-en-Ponthieu and Estrées-lès-Crécy. A source of traffic was the raperie here, which processed sugar beet before it was sent to a refinery. This traffic continued until 1951.[2]

[edit] Wadicourt

There were two point for the collection of sugar beet here.

[edit] Dompierre-sur-Authie

Dompierre-sur-Authie was the Northern terminus of the line from Abbeville. It was 25 kilometres (16 mi) from Noyelles and 31 kilometres (19 mi) from Abbeville.[5]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d CFdSomme
  2. ^ a b c d e f Pacey, Philip (2000). Railways of the Baie de Somme. Usk, Mon.: The Oakwood Press. ISBN 0 85361 554 3. 
  3. ^ a b French article on the Chemins de fer départementaux de la Somme.
  4. ^ Perso Yahoo Babelfish translation from French to English.
  5. ^ a b FACS-UNECTO
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