Paris Gare de Lyon | ||||||||||||||||||
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 The main facade | ||||||||||||||||||
| General information | ||||||||||||||||||
| Location | 4 Place Louis Armand Paris France | |||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 48°50′41″N2°22′25″E / 48.8448°N 2.3735°E /48.8448; 2.3735 | |||||||||||||||||
| Elevation | 42 metres (138 ft)[1] | |||||||||||||||||
| Operated by | SNCF andRATP Group | |||||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | Paris–Marseille railway | |||||||||||||||||
| Platforms | 13(surface) / 1(RER A) / 2(RER D) | |||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 22(surface) / 2(RER A) / 4(RER D) | |||||||||||||||||
| Train operators | SNCF(TER, RER D),RATP(RER A),Trenitalia(Frecciarossa) | |||||||||||||||||
| Connections |     | |||||||||||||||||
| Construction | ||||||||||||||||||
| Parking | Yes | |||||||||||||||||
| Architect | Marius Toudoire | |||||||||||||||||
| Other information | ||||||||||||||||||
| Station code | 87686030 / 87686006 | |||||||||||||||||
| Fare zone | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| History | ||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 12 August 1849 (1849-08-12) | |||||||||||||||||
| Passengers | ||||||||||||||||||
| 2022 | 102,024,783[2] | |||||||||||||||||
| Rank | 2nd busiest in France | |||||||||||||||||
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TheGare de Lyon, officiallyParis Gare de Lyon (French pronunciation:[paʁiɡaʁdəljɔ̃]), is one of the seven large mainlinerailway stations inParis,France.[3] It handles about 148.1 million passengers annually according to the estimates of theSNCF in 2018, with SNCF railways and theRER D accounting for around 110 million and theRER A accounting for 38 million,[citation needed] making it the second-busiest station of France after theGare du Nord and one of thebusiest in Europe.
The station is located in the12th arrondissement, on theright bank of the riverSeine, in the east of Paris. Opened in 1849, it is the northern terminus of theParis–Marseille railway. It is named after the city ofLyon, a stop for many long-distance trains departing here, most en route to theSouth of France. The station is served by high-speedTGV trains to Southern and Eastern France, Switzerland, Germany, Italy and Spain. The station also hosts regional trains and theRER and also theGare de LyonMétro station.
Main line trains depart from 32 platforms in two distinct halls: Hall 1, which is the oldertrain shed, contains tracks labelled with letters from A to N, while the modern addition of Hall 2 contains tracks which are numbered from 5 to 23.[4] There are a further four platforms for the RER underneath the main lines.
Lyon railway station had been under construction since 1847. It was officially opened to the public on 12 August 1849 under the name "Railway station from Paris to Montereau" (fr. Embarcadère de chemin de fer de Paris à Montereau). It was a boardwalk building designed by architectFrançois-Alexis Cendrier [fr] under the direction of Baron Haussmann, and at the time of its construction it was awaiting arbitration between the French state and the firstCompagnie des chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée (PLM) company over its management. PLM did not like the fact thatMazas prison was being built next to the station. The company hoped that it could extend the railroad branch line toPlace de la Bastille. But instead of that, Lyon Street (fr. Rue de Lyon) was laid out between the station and Place de la Bastille. The station was expanded many times as the volume of rail traffic increased.[5]
As the station became unsuitable for further expansion, a second Gare de Lyon building was constructed in 1855 by the design of the architect François-Alexis Cendrier. New building was operated by the newly establishedParis à Lyon (PL) railway company. The station was built on a 6-to-8-metre (20 to 26 ft) high embankment to protect it from the floods of theSeine. It had only five tracks, occupying a large hall 220 metres (720 ft) long and 42 metres (138 ft) wide. A portico to the right of the entrance to the arrival hall connected the station itself to the Bâtiment X, the central administration building on the side facing Boulevard Mazas. The station was partially destroyed by fire during theParis Commune in 1871 and later rebuilt.[5]
On 8 July 1887, GeneralGeorges Boulanger's departure from Paris triggered a demonstration: 8,000 people stormed the train station and covered the train with "Il reviendra" (He will return) posters and delayed its departure by an hour and a half.[6]
By 1900, in time for the1900 World's Fair, a new thirteen-track Gare de Lyon building was constructed, designed by the Toulon architectMarius Toudoire and decorated with a large fresco by the Marseille artistJean-Baptiste Olive, depicting some of the cities to which one could take a train from this station.[7] It was inaugurated on 6 April 1901 byÉmile Loubet, president of the Third Republic.
On multiple levels, it is considered a classic example of the architecture of its time. Most notable is the large clock tower atop one corner of the station, similar in style to the clock tower of thePalace of Westminster, home toBig Ben. The station houses theLe Train Bleu restaurant, which has served drinks and meals to travellers and other guests since 1901 in an ornately decorated setting.
On 27 June 1988, in theGare de Lyon rail accident, a runaway train crashed into a stationary rush-hour train, killing 56 people and injuring a further 55. A fire broke out on 28 February 2020,[8] that was reportedly started by Congolese protesters.[9] The station was completely evacuated.
On 18 December 2021, the station became the terminus of the newly-inauguratedMilan–Paris Frecciarossa.[10][11]
On 3 February 2024, astabbing at the station injured 3 people.[12]
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From Gare de Lyon train services depart to major French cities such as:Lyon,Marseille,Nice,Montpellier,Perpignan,Dijon,Besançon,Mulhouse,Grenoble and a number of destinations in theFrench Alps. International services operate to Italy:Turin andMilan; Switzerland:Geneva,Zürich,Basel andLausanne; and Spain:Barcelona.
The following services currently call at Gare de Lyon:
The station has appeared in the following films:
À la gare de Lyon, plus de 8 000 personnes l'attendent, d'après les rapports de la préfecture de police. […] La marée humaine défonce les grilles, submerge le service d'ordre et envahit les voies, et la locomotive emportant le général aura toutes les peines du monde à s'extraire de la foule, avec plus d'une heure et demie de retard.
