Chemin de Fer du Blanc-Argent

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Chemin de Fer du Blanc-Argent
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Argent-sur-Sauldre
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Clémont
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Brinon-sur-Sauldre
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Pierrefitte-sur-Sauldre
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Souesmes
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Les Loges
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Salbris
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La Ferté-Imbault
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Selles St. Dennis
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Loreux
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Villeherviers
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Faubourg d'Orléans
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Romorantin
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Les Quatre-Roues
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Pruniers
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Gièvres
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Chabris
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Varennes-sur-Fouzon
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Valençay
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La Gauterie
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Luçay-le-Mâle
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La Foulquetière
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Terre Neuve
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Écueillé
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Heugnes
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Pellevoisin
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Juscop
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Argy
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Buzançais
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Bonneau-Habilly
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Chaventon
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Vendoeuvres
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Ste. Thérese
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Subtray
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Mézières-en-Brenne
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St. Michel St. Cyran
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Lingé
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Douadic
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Azé
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Le Blanc

The Chemin de Fer du Blanc-Argent (BA) is a 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 38 in) gauge railway in the Centre-Val de Loire region of France, part of which is still open to traffic, whilst another section is now operated as a heritage railway.

Centre-Val de Loire Administrative region of France

Centre-Val de Loire is one of the 13 administrative regions of France. It straddles the middle Loire Valley in the interior of the country. The administrative capital is Orléans.

France Republic with mainland in Europe and numerous oversea territories

France, officially the French Republic, is a country whose territory consists of metropolitan France in Western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The metropolitan area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany to the northeast, Switzerland and Italy to the east, and Andorra and Spain to the south. The overseas territories include French Guiana in South America and several islands in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. The country's 18 integral regions span a combined area of 643,801 square kilometres (248,573 sq mi) and a total population of 67.3 million. France, a sovereign state, is a unitary semi-presidential republic with its capital in Paris, the country's largest city and main cultural and commercial centre. Other major urban areas include Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lille and Nice.

Heritage railway railway used for heritage/historical/tourism purposes

A heritage railway is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period in the history of rail transport.

Contents

History

The BA was conceived as a standard-gauge cross-country route linking lines of the Chemin de Fer de Paris à Orléans (PO). Although the original scheme was abandoned, the PO built the line as a single-track metre-gauge railway, linking Argent with Le Blanc, and running through the departments of Loiret, Loir-et-Cher and Indre. [1]

Loiret Department of France

Loiret is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France.

Loir-et-Cher Department of France

Loir-et-Cher is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region, France. Its name is originated from two rivers which cross it, the Loir on the North and the Cher on the South. Its prefecture is Blois. The INSEE and La Poste gave it the number 41.

Indre Department of France

Indre is a department in central France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are called Indriens. Indre is part of the current region of Centre-Val de Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher, Cher, Creuse, Vienne, and Haute-Vienne. The préfecture (capital) is Châteauroux and there are three subpréfectures at Le Blanc, La Châtre and Issoudun.

The line had a total length of 191 kilometres (119 mi), with headquarters at Romorantin. It opened in 1901 and remained intact until 1951, when the first closures took place. All traffic was steam hauled until the early 1930s, when Billard railcars were introduced to handle some of the passenger traffic. Steam locomotives were operated until the 1950s. In 1981, the Centre region and SNCF agreed to rebuild the four Verney railcars, and built two new ones. The timetable was reorganised to give better connections with the SNCF. The BA became part of TER in 1987. Freight traffic on the BA ended in 1989. [1] [2]

Railcar single railway motor coach propelled by an internal combustion engine

A railcar, in British English and Australian English, is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach, with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railway companies, such as the Great Western, termed such vehicles "railmotors".

SNCF national state-owned railway company of France

The Société nationale des chemins de fer français is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffic along with Monaco, including the TGV, France's high-speed rail network. Its functions include operation of railway services for passengers and freight, and maintenance and signalling of rail infrastructure. The railway network consists of about 32,000 km (20,000 mi) of route, of which 1,800 km (1,100 mi) are high-speed lines and 14,500 km (9,000 mi) electrified. About 14,000 trains are operated daily.

Transport express régional commuter rail

Transport express régional is the brand name used by the SNCF, the French national railway company, to denote rail service run by the regional councils of France, specifically their organised transport authorities. The network serves twenty French regions; Île-de-France and Corsica have their own specific transport systems. Every day, over 800,000 passengers are carried on 5,700 TER-branded trains.

The lines

The BA was divided into five sections operationally.

Argent - Salbris

Closed to passengers in 1939. Argent - Clemont was the first section to close completely, in 1951. Clémont - Salbris closed to freight in 1973 [3]

Salbris - Romorantin

Open to passengers. [1]

Romorantin - Valençay

Open. [1]

Valençay - Luçay-le-Mâle

Closed in October 2009 after a safety inspection. There is a replacement bus service.

Luçay-le-Mâle - Buzançais

Closed to passengers in 1980, freight in 1989. Used by the preservation society Luçay-le-Mâle - Argy, Argy - Buzançais rebuilt to standard gauge. [3]

Buzançais - Le Blanc

Closed to passengers in September 1953 and freight in December 1953. [3]

Rolling stock

Steam locomotives

Railcars

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X202 as preserved
X74504 Meterspurzug Salbris.jpg
X74504

Diesel locomotives

Preservation

Part of the line between Lucay-le-Male and Buzançais has been preserved by the Société d'Animation du Blanc-Argent (SABA). The final section, between Argy and Buzançais, has been converted to standard gauge to serve a local agricultural industry so Argy is the southern terminus of the preserved part of the line. [3] [7]

Preserved stock

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Organ, John (2002). Northern France Narrow Gauge. Midhurst: Middleton Press. ISBN   1-901706-75-3.
  2. "The Prototype Blanc-Argent". Jean-Philippe Joliveau. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Map of the Blanc-Argent Railway". Jean-Philippe Joliveau. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
  4. 1 2 3 Davies 2003, p. 89.
  5. 1 2 Davies 2003, pp. 89–90.
  6. Davies, p. 90.
  7. "Plan de situation". Le Train du Bas-Berry. Retrieved 2008-03-31.