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Tram systems in Geneva

About Geneva

Geneva is the most populous city of the Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and the second-most populous in Switzerland. It is situated where the Rhône flows into Lake Geneva and is the capital of the Republic and Canton of Geneva. Ville de Genève, the municipality, has a population of just over 200,000. The city is a global city and financial centre, and well known as a worldwide centre for diplomacy due to the presence of many international organizations. Many agencies of the United Nations and the Red Cross have their headquarters in Geneva and it is also where the Geneva Conventions were signed.

Overview of public transport in Geneva

Geneva is served by the Geneva Cointrin International Airport, which is connected by Gare de Genève-Aéroport to both the Swiss Federal Railways network and the French SNCF network. Trains operated by Swiss Federal Railways connect the airport to the main station of Cornavin in six minutes. Transports Publics Genevois (TPG) operates most of the public transportation system in Geneva Canton, including the trams, trolleybuses and buses. Local rail services are provided by the Swiss Federal Railways (Chemins de Fer Fédéraux) and passenger ferries across the lake by the Mouettes Genevoises Navigation. A common fare system (Unireso) is operated by the TPG, CFF and MGN and some in neighbouring France so that a single ticket can be used for any public transport within its zones and times of validity. The TPG network includes four tramway routes, 41 bus routes and 12 nighttime bus routes.

Geneva's current tram system

Réseau tramway de Genève as the tram network is known is operated by Transports Publics Genevois and is the core element of the public transport system in Geneva. There are currently four tram lines, numbered 12, 14, 15 and 18 and most sections of track are only operated by one line. This means that points on the inner city sections, such as Genève-Cornavin station, can no longer be reached from all parts of the network without the need to change trams en route.

Geneva currently has 4 tram lines, details of which can be found on the Lines tab

History of trams in Geneva

The first team line in Geneva was a horsecar tramway that ran between Place Neuve and Carouge. The line opened in June 1862 and was also the first tram line in Switzerland. This was followed In 1889 by a steam tramway and in 1894 by Geneva's first electric tram. In 1899, the Compagnie Genevoise des Tramways Électriques (CGTE), the predecessor of the TPG, was inaugurated, with the aim of unifying the various tram systems. All lines were electrified and converted to a uniform metre gauge. By 1923, a total of 120km of tramways had been built and the network extended into the countryside, and even across the border into France. At this time, the network was the largest in Europe. from 1925, the CGTE began to convert the interurban lines to bus operation and partially replace the lines in the city centre, where the lines were partly replaced by trolleybuses. By 1969, the network had shrunk to just one 8 km long tramway, between Moillesulaz and Carouge.

In January 1977, the CGTE was transformed into the TPG, an autonomous government agency for the canton of Geneva. In 1978, the TPG renewed the tracks of the last remaining tramway. In 1984, construction began of the new Bachet tram depot in Bachet-de-Pesay, and to connect the new facility with the existing network, the route of line 12 was extended in September 1987 from Carouge to Bachet. On 28 May 1995, line 13 between Cornavin and Bachet was opened, and trams returned to the other side of the Rhône. In June 1997, the line was extended from Bachet to Palettes. This was followed in March 1998, by the introduction of line 16 between Moillesulaz and Cornavin. In December 2003, line 13 was extended from Cornavin to Nations. The following year, in December 2004, line 15 entered service, running from Lancy-Pont-Rouge via Acacias to Plainpalais, and continued from there via Cornavin station to Nations. A year later, this new section was also served by line 17, which ran from Plainpalais to Eaux-Vives station. In May 2006, the introduction of a new section between Palettes and Lancy-Pont-Rouge, completed the ring link. The new ring link section enabled the extension of lines 15 and 17 to Palettes and Bachet, respectively.

The next network expansion phases included the Tram Cornavin–Meyrin–CERN (TCMC) project and the Tram Cornavin–Onex–Bernex (TCOB). The first section of the TCMC, between Cornavin and Avanchet, was opened on 8 December 2007, initially forming part of the extended line 16 (Moillesulaz to Avanchet) and the new line 14 (Bachet to Avanchet). On same date, line 17 was extended, from Eaux-Vives station to the disused Chêne-Bourg station. The second stage of the TCMC (Avanchet to Meyrin) took place in December 2009 and in April 2011, operations commenced on the section to CERN. The first section of the TCOB route, between Coutance and Genève-Cornavin station went into service in December 2010 and the full route to Bernex P+R at the end of 2011. A new line 18 ran on the route, and was extended to CERN in May 2011. After the new route to Bernex P+R was commissioned, the network was simplified. . The use of the previous lines 13, 16 and 17 were discontinued, and only one line now operates on most section of track. An extension of line 14 from Bernex-Est to Bernex-Vailly commenced service at the end of 2013.

Geneva tram lines

Geneva currently has 4 tram lines, which are listed below. To see more information about a particular line, click on the link in the table below (where applicable).

Line Description
12 Line 12 runs from Palettes to Moillesulaz via Bachet-de-Pesay.
14 Line 14 runs from Bernex Park and Ride to Meyrin-Gravière via Bel Air.
15 Line 15 runs from Palettes to Nations via Acacias.
18 Line 18 runs from Carouge to CERN via Gare Cornavin.

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