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RER D is one of the five lines in theRéseau Express Régional (English: Regional Express Network), a hybridcommuter rail andrapid transit system servingParis and its suburbs. The 190-kilometre (120 mi) line crosses the region from north to south, with all trains serving a group of stations in central Paris, before branching out towards the ends of the line.
The line connectsCreil in the north toMelun andMalesherbes in the south, passing through the heart of Paris. Line D also linksGare du Nord withGare de Lyon viaChâtelet-Les Halles.
Opened in stages from 1987 to 1996, it is the longest RER line by distance, and the busiestSNCF line in France, carrying up to 615,000 passengers and operating 466 trains each working day.[2]
Almost all of the line is located in theÎle-de-France region, that is, within the jurisdiction of theÎle-de-France Mobilités, but some of the branch lines at the north and south of the line are outside the region.
Initially, the "métro régional", the ancestor to the RER, was conceived of three lines, one going from east to west (the futureRER A), a new line built from existing lines (the futureRER C), the extension of theLigne de Sceaux and with its interconnection with anSNCF line, along with a supplementary interconnected north–south (the future RER D). The operation of renovating "les Halles" gave the occasion to buildChâtelet-Les Halles with acut-and-cover method, in order to reduce costs.[3]
Initially the new RER D was meant to share tracks with the RER A betweenParis-Gare de Lyon andChâtelet-Les Halles. ButRATP, the company who runs the RER A, objected to such an operation as the number of passengers using the RER A was growing and required running extra trains on the RER A. It was decided instead that each line should have its own platforms, with RER A at theGare de Lyon having its tracks at a lower level of the underground station and the future RER D on the upper level. The RER D at theGare de Lyon has four tracks and, being above the RER A tracks, this allows "platform to platform" transfers vertically, a Japanese invention.[3]
On 27 September 1987, the RER D was officially created, by extending existing suburban trains fromVilliers-le-Bel toGare du Nord, towardsChâtelet-Les Halles. Initially 19 km (12 mi) long, it was equipped with bi-current Z 8800 stock trains, while newerZ 20500 stock trains were still being built. At Châtelet-Les Halles, the RER D terminated on the three central tracks, already built from the conception ofChâtelet-Les Halles station.[4]
In 1988, existing suburban trains terminating atGoussainville now integrate with the RER D.[5] On the same year, the first bi-modeZ 20500 trains are in service. They were initially composed of 4 cars until the north–south interconnection was inaugurated in 1995, when they became 5-car trains (where they're coupled to make 10-car trains).[citation needed]
In September 1990, the RER D again extended north toOrry-la-Ville. At the same time,one-man operation started on the RER D.[6]
On 11 September 1995, the north–south interconnection of the RER D was put into service by building a dedicated 2.5 km (1.6 mi) long tunnel betweenChâtelet-Les Halles and theGare de Lyon.[7]
In 1996, the RER D was extended south fromLa Ferté-Alais toMalesherbes.[4] On 15 January 1998 for the1998 FIFA World Cup,Stade de France – Saint-Denis station opened, in order to serve theStade de France.
On 22 November 2006 theSTIF approved a master plan for the RER D in order to establish short, mid and long-term goals for its reliability.[8]
On 29 January 2007, the first renovatedZ 20500 train was presented, the first of 137 trains. Renovated trains feature a new blue livery, uniform 2+3 seats, new lighting and new floor covering. The renovation programme cost over €100 million.[9]
The RER D has among the worst on-time performance of lines in Île-de-France, with 84% of trains running on time on average 2013-2021,[10] and 85% of trains running on time in late 2023.[11] This unpunctuality is partially due to the tunnel theRER B and RER D lines share betweenChâtelet–Les Halles andGare du Nord, where even a small delay on either line can cause large delays and cancelled trains.
Like all other lines of the RER system, every train is assigned a four letter code, called aname of service or amission code. Train timetables,passenger information display systems and the front of the trains all display names of services.[12][13]
The first letter corresponds to the final destination, which is essentially the train's terminus.
The second letter indicates the stations served by the train in the section spanning from Gare de Lyon to Villeneuve-Saint-Georges.
The third letter indicates the branch the train takes.
The fourth letter indicates whether the train would serve Viry-Châtillon or not, and it also indicates the direction the train is running.
| Destination | Names of services |
|---|---|
| Malesherbes | BOVO |
| Gare de Lyon (underground) | DACA, DICA, DOCA, DOPA, DOPE, DUPA |
| Goussainville | FACA |
| Juvisy | JAVA, JOVA, JUVA |
| Orry-la-Ville - Coye | LOPA, LOPE |
| Gare de Lyon (surface) | PACA, PICA |
| Corbeil-Essonnes | ROPE, ROPO, ROSA, ROVO, RUPO |
| Creil | SOPA, SOPE |
| Stade de France – Saint-Denis | UACA, UOPA, UOPE, UUPA |
| Villiers-le-Bel–Gonesse–Arnouville | VOPA, VOPE, VUPA |
| Melun | ZACO, ZICO, ZOSO, ZOVO |
In the old system used until 2008, the last letter did not indicate whether the train would serve Viry-Châtillon or not, and the first letters for Creil, Orry-la-Ville-Coye and Villeneuve-Saint-Georges were different.[14]
First letter: destination of the train
Third letter: the branch
| Destination | Names of services |
|---|---|
| Gare du Nord | AUCH, AUPA, AUVA |
| Malesherbes | BIPA, BIPE, BOPA |
| Creil | CIVA, COVA, COVO |
| Gare de Lyon | DAPA, DECA, DICA, DIPA, DOCA, DOLE, DOPA, DOVA, DUCA |
| Goussainville | FACE, FIPE, FOVI |
| Orry-la-Ville - Coye | HIPA, HIVA, HOPA, HOVI |
| Juvisy | JAPA |
| Châtelet–Les Halles | MOLE |
| Combs-la-Ville–Quincy | NACE, NICE, NOCE |
| Corbeil-Essonnes | REPI, RIPA, RIPE, RIPO, RIPA, ROPA, ROSA, ROSU, ROVA |
| La Ferté-Alais | TYPA, TYPE, TYPO |
| Stade de France – Saint-Denis | UIPE, ULCO, ULPE, UPPE |
| Villiers-le-Bel–Gonesse–Arnouville | VICK, VIPA, VIPE, VOPE |
| Melun | ZACK, ZAPE, ZIPE, ZOCK, ZOPA, ZOVA, ZUCK, ZYCK |
On 20 September 2003, an unusual incident occurred nearVilleneuve-Triage station. A southbound train stopped at 18:50 on the central track near the station due to an incident. Passengers aboard were invited to step off the train by the left, as track 2M has been neutralised by the regulators. However, due to a misuse of the alarm signal by nervous passengers, some doors opened on the right. Ignoring the driver's orders, numerous passengers stepped off on the right, and were confronted with a northbound train, travelling at around 110 km/h (70 mph).
The driver of the train had the time to activate his emergency brakes and slowed the train to around 70 km/h (45 mph), which permitted to passengers to brace against the stopped train or jump into the ditch. Thankfully, no one was injured.[15] This near miss, filmed by a passenger with a mobile phone, was broadcast the night of the incident, and created a large controversy.[16][17]
On 9 July 2004, an allegedanti-semitic assault provoked a public and political reaction, with immediate declarations from theMinistry of the InteriorDominique de Villepin and the President of FranceJacques Chirac.[18] However, the allegations were proven false after the investigation, as the person behind the assault suffered frompathological lying. The event provoked a controversy on the treatment of information by the media.[19][20]
Media related toRER D at Wikimedia Commons Métro |
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