LGV Méditerranée
SNCF TGV Duplex nearValence,Drôme
Overview
Status	Operational
Owner	SNCF Réseau
Locale	Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Occitanie, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France
Termini	Valence TGV station Eastern branch:Marseille Western branch:Nîmes
Service
System	SNCF
Operator(s)	SNCF Eurostar
History
Opened	7 June 2001
Technical
Line length	216 km (134 mi) + 28 km (17 mi) (western branch)
Number of tracks	Double track
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz[1]
Operating speed	320 km/h (200 mph)
Signalling	TVM 430
Route map Legend LGV Rhône-Alpes fromLyon Saint-Exupéry 493.2 Line fromGrenoble 495.5 Valence TGV Line toValence-Ville 522.6 Tunnel d'Eurre (664 m) 525.0 Livron –Die RiverDrôme (190 m) 532.8 Tunnel de Tartaiguille (2340 m) 570.2 Donzère Canal (325 m) 577.7 LineLyon –Avignon 589.2 RiverRhône (637 m) 590.4 River Rhône (887 m) 606.3 River Rhône (680 m) 617.7 0.0 Triangle junction withNîmes branch 18.4 RiverGardon (212 m) 25.1 0.0 LGV bypass of Nîmes and Montpellier fromTarascon 3.2 toNîmes 622.4 River Rhône (1573 m) 625.2 Avignon TGV 626.6 Avignon covered section (1300 m) 637.3 Tunnel de Bonpas (303 m) 646.6 RiverDurance (1500 m) 650.6 River Durance (994 m) 653.9 River Durance (942 m) 670.7 Tunnel de Lambesc (440 m) 688.2 Viaduc de Ventabren (1730 m) 699.1 Aix-en-Provence TGV 706.2 Tunnel de Marseille (7834 m) 711.2 Line fromAvignon Line toMarseille-Saint-Charles

TheLGV Méditerranée (French:Ligne à Grande Vitesse; English: Mediterranean high-speed line) is a 250-kilometre-long (160-mile) Frenchhigh-speed rail line running from north to south betweenSaint-Marcel-lès-Valence,Drôme andMarseille,Bouches-du-Rhône, also featuring a connection toNîmes,Gard to the west.

It connects the regions ofProvence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur andOccitanie to theLGV Rhône-Alpes and from there ontoLyon and the north of France. Construction costs rose to €3.8 billion; the line entered service in 2001 following an official opening by PresidentJacques Chirac. The commencement of service on the line has led to a reversal of the respective airplane and train markets: by making Marseille reachable in three hours from Paris—a distance of over 750 kilometres (470 mi)—the train now handles two-thirds of all journeys on that route. LGVs Méditerranée, Rhône-Alpes andSud-Est, when completed, also received their official nickname, theCity To Coast (C2C) Highway ("Ville à la Mer").^[2]

The line features theTunnel de Marseille, allowing it to enter Marseille underground, the longest railway tunnel wholly located in France, at 7.8 km (4.8 mi).^[3]

The LGV Méditerranée begins in the southeast atSaint-Marcel-lès-Valence, as the extension of theLGV Rhône-Alpes. The newValence TGV station lies at the interchange with the regular Valence–Grenoble line, allowing rapid connections towardsValence,Romans-sur-Isère andGrenoble. AtCrest, an emergency link is provided to the Briançon–Loriol line. The LGV then approaches theRhône, rejoining theA7 autoroute atMontélimar. After crossing theCanal de Donzère-Mondragon, the line connects to the regular network by an emergency link situated betweenPierrelatte and Lapalud.

Spanning the Rhône three times (twice atMornas, once north ofRoquemaure), the LGV continues toLes Angles, where a triangle allows access to the southwest and southeast. The southwest branch is generally thought of as the beginning of a futureLGV Languedoc-Roussillon, joining the regular Avignon–Nîmes line 25 kilometres (16 mi) later atRedessan and since 2017 theLGV Nîmes–Montpellier. The southeast branch crosses the Rhône again on two parallel viaducts and serves the newAvignon TGV station, then follows theDurance which it crosses atOrgon.

AtVentabren, a 1.73 kilometres (1.07 mi) viaduct extends across theA8 autoroute, the D10 and theCanal de Provence. The line then dives southward, serving the newAix-en-Provence TGV station, traverses the 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) longTunnel de Marseille and re-joins the regular network at the entry toMarseille.

• Gare de Valence TGV atSaint-Marcel-lès-Valence; a unique two-level station (below, TGVs; above,TERs) which allows rapid connections towards Valence,Grenoble andRomans-sur-Isère
• Gare d'Avignon TGV south of Avignon; its proximity to the city centre has ensured its popularity. An enhancement to the station allowed it to be served by local services connecting toAvignon's central station, amongst others.
• Gare d'Aix-en-Provence TGV near the Réaltor reservoir, halfway between Aix-en-Provence and Marseille Airport; this station has proved more popular than expected and serves the north of the Marseille area. It is also recommended by agents for rail travellors planning to go further by ship from the harbours in the area of Fos-Lavera-Port de Bouc, in preference to the TGV station inMarseille. Gare d'Aix TGV has a road connection toAix-en-Provence, but no classic rail connection as with Valence TGV.

• Numerous protests, particularly from well connected wine growers of theRhône Valley, made PresidentMitterrand force alterations to the route; the original path would have kept to the left bank of the river, while the final route ended up skirting the river, crossing it back and forth four times, at a higher construction cost.
• The nearly 250 kilometres (160 mi) long line currently has no regularly used connection to the classic train network (unless one considers the southwest branch as a connector). Numerous connections had however been proposed:
  • a link at Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence between the LGV (southwards) and the regular line (eastwards), accompanied by the electrification of the Valence-Grenoble line. This would permit direct connections betweenGrenoble and the Mediterranean; instead, passengers traveling between Marseille and Grenoble must change at Valence-TGV; with the Valence toGeneva line through Grenoble now electrified, this link becomes more attractive and a connection is considered for the near-future; another link from the LGV (southwards) to the regular line (towards Valence) would have enabled service to Valence central station from the south;
  • a link at Roquemaure from the north towardsAvignon would not only have enabled service to Avignon central station, but would have enabled faster service forArles. A link south of Avignon would equally have permitted the linking of Avignon central station withMarseille in 25 minutes
  • the regular use of the existing link at Pierrelatte would have enabled rapid service toOrange from the north, as well as Avignon and Arles, given that no link was created at Roquemaure
  • a link at Orgon with the Avignon-Miramas line via Cavaillon would have enabled service toSalon-de-Provence,Miramas andIstres from the north

• Paris–Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport: 1:50
• Paris–Valence: 2:16
• Paris–Avignon: 2:40
• Paris–Aix en Provence: 2:55
• Paris–Marseille: 3:07
• Paris–Toulon: 3:55
• Paris–Hyères: 4:15
• Paris–Fréjus: 4.40
• Paris–Nice: 5.35
• Paris–Nîmes: 2:55
• Paris–Montpellier: 3:15
• Paris–Béziers: 4:03
• Paris–Perpignan: 4:45

• Lyon–Marseille: 1:40
• Lyon–Toulouse: 4:30
• London–Marseille: 6:28
• Lille–Nice: 7:09
• Metz–Nice: 9:15
• Geneva–Marseille: 3.30

• TGV
• High-speed rail in France

• High-speed rail lines site (in French)

• High-speed railway lines in France
• Railway lines opened in 2001

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• Short description is different from Wikidata