France (Centre - Val de Loire) - Lines with Obscure or Sparse passenger services
Obscure Services
Les Aubrais/Orléans Area
[ERT 296, 310 & 315, fiches 1.2 Orléans - Vierzon & 2.1 Tours - Orléans] (ERA 27B4; 48C4) FR300
The ‘classic’ main lines from Paris to Tours and Vierzon (- Bourges/Limoges) split at Les Aubrais, north of Orléans, bypassing the city centre to the north-west and east respectively. The original main line continues southwards from Les Aubrais to Orléans, which is a terminal station. There are direct curves from Orléans west to the Tours line and east to the Vierzon line. The majority of regional services use these curves whereas there is a much thinner service over the main lines from Les Aubrais avoiding Orléans station:
- towards La Chapelle-St.Mesmin used by Intercités services between Paris Austerlitz and the Tours line
- towards St.Cyr-en-Val-La-Source used by Intercités services between Paris Austerlitz and Vierzon or beyond.
Click on the thumbnail for a full size map.
St.Pierre-des-Corps (Poste 4) – Bifurcation de Tours [ – Monts (Indre-et-Loire)]
[ERT 300, fiche 2.5 Tours - Poitiers] (ERA 27C3, not shown; 60D3) FR301
This east to south curve from St. Pierre-de-Corps to the Poitiers main line is used by TGVs and Intercités running between St-Pierre-des-Corps and Bordeaux. Local trains normally run direct between Monts and Tours, although any exceptions which run via St-Pierre-des-Corps (and hence use this curve) would be shown on fiche 2.5.
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St.Pierre-des-Corps (poste 4) – Bifurcation Grammont [ – Saumur or Chateau-du-Loir]
[ERT 271 & 289, fiches 2.6 Orléans - Nantes and 2.8 Tours - Le Mans] (ERA 27C3; 60D3) FR20/302
This connection between the Paris and Angers lines, bypassing Tours, is used by trains running directly between St.Pierre-des-Corps and Saumur or Château-du-Loir. Other trains for these lines run direct from or to Tours.
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SuO | TER857239 | Tours - 09:10 St Pierre-des-Corps - Le Mans | |
SuX | TGV Inoui 5350 | Lyon Part Dieu - 09:45 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | |
SSuO | IntercitiésEco 4071 | Paris Austerlitz - 09:58 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | |
TGV Inoui 5487 | Strasbourg - 11:48 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | ||
SSuO | TGV Inoui 5352 | Lyon Part Dieu - 12:08 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | |
TGV5224 | Lille Flandres - 13:07 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | ||
SSuX | TGV Inoui 5352 | Lyon Part Dieu - 14:15 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | |
Intercités 4504 | Lyon Perrache - 14:35 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | ||
SuO | TER16586 | Tours - 19:22 St Pierre-des-Corps - Le Mans | |
Intercités 4506 | Lyon Perrache - 20:25 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | ||
TGV Inoui 5358 | Lyon Part Dieu - 21:33 St Pierre-des-Corps - Nantes | ||
SSuX | TGV Inoui 5300 | Nantes - 05:31/05:35 Angers St Laud - Lyon Part Dieu | |
Intercités 4402 | Nantes - 07:38 Saumur Rive Droite - Lyon-Perrache | ||
SSuO | TER165521 | Le Mans - 11:10 Château du Loir - Tours | |
TER16556 | Le Mans - 15:05 Château du Loir - Tours | ||
Intercités 4406 | Nantes - 15:49 Saumur Rive Droite - Lyon-Perrache | ||
SX | TGV Inoui 5320 | Nantes - 17:49 Saumur Rive Droite - Lyon-Perrache | |
FSuO | REMI857023 | Le Mans - 19:23 Château du Loir - Tours | |
SSuO | IntercitésEco 4070 | Nantes - 20:19 Saumur Rive Droite - Paris Austerlitz |
TGV5224 is a TGV Inoui service at weekends.
Bourges avoiding line: Marmagne – St.Florent-sur-Cher
[fiche 4.1, ERT315] (ERA 27C5; 75B1) FR20/303
This west to south curve is used by trains between Vierzon and Montluçon not scheduled to call at Bourges.
From Vierzon: 10:22 SuX, 19:23 SSuX, 22:57 FO
From Montluçon Ville: 05:28 SuX, 06:09 SO, 10:35 SuX
Bellébat turning circle (Musée des Transports de Pithiviers)
(ERA 27B5, not shown; 49A2-A3) FR304
See their website. Normally, trains arrive and depart by the long arc of the balloon loop at Bellébat. Exceptionally, the first train of the day arrives, and the last train of the day leaves, by the short arc here instead.