Coudekerque-Branche–Fontinettes railway

Coudekerque-Branche–Fontinettes railway
Overview
System SNCF
Status Operational
Locale France Nord-Pas-de-Calais
Termini Les Fontinettes, Calais
Coudekerque-Branche, Dunkirk
Operation
Opening 1876
Owner RFF
Operator(s) SNCF
Technical
Line length 41.159 km (25.575 mi)
No. of tracks Single track
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification unelectrified
Route map
Legend
304.8 Dunkirk
Freight
to De Panne
304.4
1.4
 Coudekerque-Branche
Line to LGV Nord and Hazebrouck
Petite-Synthe
Freight
Grande-Synthe Marshalling Yard
6.6 Grande-Synthe
8.1 Courghain
Freight
to Dunkerque Maritime
Loon-Plage
Craywick-Coppenaxfort
17.6 Bourbourg
to Watten-Éperlecques
23.6 Gravelines
Movable bridge over the Aa
Pont-d'Oye
Offekerque
Marck
40.2 Beau-Marais
Saint-Pierre
43.7
104.1
 Line from Lille
104.9
293.0
 Les Fontinettes
294.6 Calais-Ville
Line to Boulogne

The Coudekerque-Branche–Fontinettes railway runs along the English Channel and North Sea coast of France from a junction near Gare de Coudekerque-Branche in Dunkirk to a junction near Gare des Fontinettes in Calais. It is 41.159 kilometres (25.575 miles) long and unelectrified single track for much of its length, except for the first 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) from Dunkirk which is double track electrified with 25kV 50 Hz. Line speeds are from 80 km/h (50 mph) to 120 km/h (75 mph).

There is a movable bridge over the Aa at Gravelines to allow navigation of the river.

As of August 2011, an irregular service of 3 to 5 trains run each day.[1]

History

The line was built by Compagnie du Nord-Est and opened 10 August 1876. Operations were transferred on 5 June 1883 to Compagnie des chemins de fer du Nord.

The whole length of the line was doubled in 1915, to be resingled along much of its length in 1960. The first ten kilometres of the line from Coudekerque was electrified in 1962 and the marshalling yard (triage de Grande-Synthe) at Grande-Sythe built between 1962 and 1965.

There are plans to electrify the line by 2014.[2]

Notes

  1. ↑ Dunkerque-Calais timetable (French)
  2. ↑ Les TER plus nombreux et plus rapides vers Calais, et davantage de TER-GV entre Dunkerque et Lille - La Voix du Nord - 11.04.2011 - Bruno Verheyde (French)

References