Bordeaux–Irun railway

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Bordeaux–Irun railway
Gare de Guethary (64).JPG
Bordeaux–Irun railway
Overview
StatusOperational
Owner RFF
LocaleFrance (Nouvelle-Aquitaine),
Spain (Basque Country)
Termini
Service
System SNCF
Operator(s) SNCF
History
Opened1841-1864
Technical
Line length235 km (146 mi)
Number of tracks Double track [1]
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Electrification 1.5 kV DC [2]
Route map

Contents

BSicon CONTg.svg
Line from Paris-Austerlitz
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0.0
Bordeaux-Saint-Jean
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BSicon CONTfq.svg
Line to Toulouse
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BSicon ABZgr.svg
to Pointe de Grave
BSicon HST.svg
7.0
Pessac
BSicon HST.svg
9.5
Alouette-France
BSicon HST.svg
13.4
Gazinet-Cestas
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24.9
Croix-d'Hins
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28.6
Marcheprime
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39.3
Facture-Biganos
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BSicon ABZgr.svg
42.3
to Arcachon
BSicon HST.svg
75.5
Ychoux
BSicon HST.svg
88.9
Labouheyre
BSicon HST.svg
108.5
Morcenx
BSicon ABZgl.svg
BSicon CONTfq.svg
108.5
to Mont-de-Marsan
BSicon eABZgl.svg
BSicon exCONTfq.svg
133.8
to Tartas
BSicon BHF.svg
147.5
Dax
BSicon ABZgl.svg
BSicon CONTfq.svg
147.5
to Puyoô and Pau
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161.9
Saubusse-les-Bains
BSicon HST.svg
166.3
Saint-Geours-de-Maremne
BSicon HST.svg
171.9
Saint-Vincent-de-Tyrosse
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178.1
Bénesse-Maremne
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184.7
Labenne
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187.8
Ondres
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193.8
Boucau
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197.6
Bayonne
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199.1
River Adour
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BSicon CONTfq.svg
199.5
Line to Puyoô and Toulouse
BSicon ABZgl.svg
BSicon CONTfq.svg
199.5
Line to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port
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200.1
River Nive
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BSicon eABZgr.svg
200.3
to port of Bayonne
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207.3
Biarritz
BSicon HST.svg
214.1
Guéthary
BSicon HST.svg
220.4
Saint-Jean-de-Luz-Ciboure
BSicon HST.svg
230.2
Les Deux-Jumeaux
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BSicon vKBHFa-BHF.svg
232.8
Hendaye
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BSicon vWBRUCKE1+ZOLL.svg
BSicon WASSERq.svg
233.3
Border FES (River Bidasoa )
BSicon vBHF-KBHFe.svg
235.1
Irun
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to Madrid

The railway from Bordeaux to Irun is an important French 235-kilometre long railway line, that connects the southwestern city Bordeaux to northern Spain. The railway was opened in several stages between 1841 and 1864. [3]

Route

The Bordeaux–Irun railway leaves the Bordeaux-Saint-Jean station in southwestern direction. The first approximately 145 km of its course runs through the Landes forest. At Lamothe the line to Arcachon branches off, and the line turns south. At Dax the line leaves the Landes forest, and the line to Puyoô and Pau branches off. The railway continues downstream along the right bank of the river Adour until Saubusse, where it turns west towards the Atlantic coast, and then south. It crosses the river Adour in Bayonne, and turns southwest. It passes along the ocean resorts Biarritz and Saint-Jean-de-Luz. It crosses the Spanish border between Hendaye and Irun, where the railway ends. France and Spain have different rail gauges (standard gauge and Iberian gauge, resp.), which requires change of trains. The section between Hendaye and Irun has tracks with both gauges.

Main stations

The main stations on the Bordeaux–Irun railway are:

History

The railway was built by the Compagnie des Chemins de fer du Midi and its predecessor Compagnie du chemin de fer de Bordeaux à La Teste. The first section that was opened in 1841 led from Bordeaux to Lamothe, a section that is shared with the railway to Arcachon. The line was extended to Dax in 1854. The section between Dax and Bayonne was opened in 1855. Finally in 1864 the line was extended from Bayonne to the Spanish border town Irun. [3]

Services

The Bordeaux–Irun railway is used by the following passenger services:

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References

  1. "RFF - Network map" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 18, 2011.
  2. "RFF - Map of electrified railway lines" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-05-16. Retrieved 2022-02-24.
  3. 1 2 Direction Générale des Ponts et Chaussées et des Chemins de Fer (1869). Statistique centrale des chemins de fer. Chemins de fer français. Situation au 31 décembre 1869 (in French). Paris: Ministère des Travaux Publics. pp. 146–160.