Tram systems in Bordeaux
Bordeaux is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region and the administrative centre of the Gironde department in southwestern France. The city stands on the River Garonne, around 60 kilometres inland from the Gironde estuary, with its historic centre occupying the river's western bank.
Bordeaux developed as an important port and trading centre, particularly through its association with the surrounding wine-producing region. The curved section of the Garonne beside the historic waterfront gave the port its traditional name, the Port of the Moon.
Much of central Bordeaux is characterised by the classical and neoclassical buildings, squares and quays created during the city's eighteenth-century prosperity. The Port of the Moon was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007, while prominent landmarks include Place de la Bourse, the Grand Théâtre, Bordeaux Cathedral and the modern Cité du Vin.
Bordeaux-Saint-Jean is the city's principal railway station. It is served by high-speed trains to Paris and other major French cities, together with regional TER Nouvelle-Aquitaine services connecting Bordeaux with destinations throughout southwestern France.
Public transport across Bordeaux and the surrounding metropolitan area operates under the TBM brand. The integrated network includes trams, conventional and express buses, BATO river shuttles, park-and-ride sites and the Le Vélo cycle-hire system. River services provide connections across and along the Garonne, while tram line F links Bordeaux Airport with the city centre, Bordeaux-Saint-Jean and Gare de Bègles.
Walking and cycling also play important roles within central Bordeaux. Large parts of the historic centre are pedestrianised, and the redevelopment of the Garonne waterfront has created continuous walking and cycling routes along the former port quays.
Bordeaux has a standard-gauge electric tram network owned by Bordeaux Métropole and operated as part of the TBM public transport system. The present network began operation in 2003 and has subsequently expanded across Bordeaux and numerous adjoining municipalities.
Six lines, lettered A to F, now operate across the network. Lines E and F were introduced in December 2025 by combining sections of existing routes to provide additional direct journeys across the metropolitan area. The network serves destinations including Bordeaux-Saint-Jean, Bordeaux Airport, the university campuses around Talence and Pessac, the riverside districts, major hospitals and residential suburbs on both sides of the Garonne.
The network combines street-running sections with reserved alignments and includes several branches beyond central Bordeaux. To protect the appearance of the historic centre, trams use ground-level electrical supply on selected central sections instead of conventional overhead wires. Services are operated by a fleet of low-floor Alstom Citadis trams.
Bordeaux's first organised public transport service was a horse-drawn omnibus introduced in 1830. The city's first horse tramway opened on 4 May 1880, beginning a network that gradually spread across Bordeaux during the closing decades of the nineteenth century.
Because the horse tramways were initially confined to the city itself, separate electric tramways began serving some surrounding communities from 1890. Electrification reached the municipal network in 1900, replacing the remaining horse-drawn services and allowing longer routes to be operated more efficiently.
Several companies initially operated different parts of the network. Their services were progressively coordinated and eventually brought together during the early twentieth century, creating an increasingly unified urban and suburban tram system.
The tramway helped to shape the outward growth of Bordeaux by allowing people working in the centre to live farther from their workplaces. Routes extended beyond the boulevards into developing communities including Le Bouscat, Pessac, Mérignac, Cenon and other parts of the surrounding area.
By the mid-1940s, Bordeaux had approximately 38 tram routes with a combined length of around 200 kilometres. The network carried about 160,000 passengers each day and formed the principal means of public transport across the city and its suburbs.
Heavy use during and immediately after the Second World War placed considerable strain on the infrastructure and rolling stock. Much of the system subsequently required major renewal at a time when municipal transport policy was becoming increasingly favourable towards buses and private cars.
Following his election as mayor in 1947, Jacques Chaban-Delmas supported the progressive replacement of Bordeaux's trams. Buses were regarded as more modern and flexible, while fixed tram tracks were increasingly considered an obstruction to growing road traffic.
Routes were closed in stages throughout the 1950s and replaced by buses. Bordeaux's final original tram service operated on 7 December 1958, bringing almost eight decades of tram operation to an end.
Tracks and other infrastructure were subsequently removed from much of the city. For the following 45 years, public transport in Bordeaux depended primarily upon buses while increasing car ownership contributed to worsening congestion across the metropolitan area.
By the 1970s and 1980s, traffic congestion and the limitations of the bus network had renewed interest in creating a high-capacity public transport system. During the mid-1980s, the Bordeaux Urban Community began developing proposals for an automated VAL metro similar to the system constructed in Lille.
The proposed metro was revised several times and a reduced scheme was approved during the early 1990s. However, concerns remained about its cost, limited geographic coverage and ability to serve important destinations such as the university campus and the elevated districts on the eastern side of the Garonne.
The VAL project was ultimately abandoned in 1995. The incoming administration led by Mayor Alain Juppé instead favoured a surface tramway that could provide a more extensive network while also supporting the redevelopment of streets and public spaces.
Following further studies, the Bordeaux Urban Community approved a three-line tramway network in 1997. The project received its declaration of public utility in 2000, and construction began during the same year.
Building the tramway was accompanied by extensive changes to streets, squares and the Garonne waterfront. Road space was reassigned, central areas were pedestrianised and public spaces were redesigned around the new transport corridors.
To avoid overhead wires across the most architecturally sensitive parts of the city, Bordeaux adopted the newly developed Alimentation Par le Sol ground-level power system. A segmented conductor rail between the running rails is energised only while it is covered by a tram, allowing vehicles to operate through the historic centre without conventional overhead equipment.
The first section of the modern network opened as line A on 21 December 2003. It linked Mériadeck with branches serving the eastern side of the Garonne, restoring tram service to Bordeaux 45 years after the original system had closed.
Initial sections of lines B and C followed during 2004. Line B connected the city centre with the university districts towards Talence and Pessac, while line C linked central Bordeaux with Bordeaux-Saint-Jean railway station.
The pioneering ground-level power equipment suffered frequent technical problems during the network's early operation. Modifications to the infrastructure and vehicles gradually improved its reliability, allowing the system to become an established part of daily transport in Bordeaux.
A second construction phase extended all three original lines during 2007 and 2008. The new sections reached destinations including Pessac Centre, Mérignac Centre, Floirac Dravemont, Les Aubiers, Terres Neuves, La Gardette and Claveau.
Further expansion began during the 2010s. Lines A, B and C were extended to developing residential, employment and leisure areas, including Le Haillan Rostand, Berges de la Garonne, Parc des Expositions and Villenave Pyrénées. New branches also reached France Alouette and Gare de Blanquefort.
The Blanquefort branch, opened in December 2016, was constructed partly alongside the existing Médoc railway. Although sometimes described as a tram-train, the tram and conventional railway services use separate tracks.
Line D became the fourth route in the Bordeaux network when its first section opened between Carle Vernet and Mairie du Bouscat on 14 December 2019. It shared the existing line C tracks through central Bordeaux before continuing over a newly constructed route towards the northwestern suburbs.
The line was completed to Eysines Cantinolle on 29 February 2020. Its opening brought tram service to Le Bouscat, Bruges and Eysines while creating another direct connection with Bordeaux-Saint-Jean and the city centre.
A five-kilometre branch from Quatre Chemins to Bordeaux Airport opened on 29 April 2023. Initially operated as part of line A, it added five stations and provided the airport with its first direct tram connection to central Bordeaux.
The network was reorganised on 6 December 2025 with the introduction of lines E and F. These routes used existing tracks rather than newly constructed infrastructure, creating direct journeys across sections previously operated as branches of lines A and C.
Line E linked Gare de Blanquefort with Floirac Dravemont through central Bordeaux, while line F connected Bordeaux Airport with Gare de Bègles via Hôtel de Ville and Bordeaux-Saint-Jean. Their introduction increased the number of named tram lines from four to six and reduced the need to change trams for several cross-city journeys.
Bordeaux Métropole is studying a new tram connection across the Garonne using the Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas. The bridge was constructed with public-transport lanes capable of accommodating tram tracks, but it is not currently connected to the tram network.
Five possible route concepts are being examined. These would connect existing tram corridors on the two sides of the river, potentially linking areas around Cenon, Galin and the right bank with La Cité du Vin, Bordeaux Maritime and other destinations on the western side. Some of the options would form longer cross-city routes using sections of the existing network.
The Métropole has begun procuring design and engineering work to assess the alternatives, but no route has been selected or approved. Funding, construction arrangements and an opening date have therefore not been confirmed, and the study does not yet constitute a commitment to build the line.
The historic Pont de pierre is undergoing a major programme of structural repairs because several of its piers have continued to settle into the riverbed. The approximately 52-month project includes strengthening the foundations with micropiles, improving waterproofing and restoring historic elements of the bridge.
Tram services across the bridge were suspended during the summers of 2025 and 2026 so that intensive phases of the work could take place. Lines A and E were divided at the Garonne during the 2026 closure, with replacement transport operating between the two sides of the river.
A further summer closure is expected during July and August 2027. Trams will again be unable to cross the bridge while this phase is underway, although Bordeaux Métropole and TBM have not yet published the detailed operating arrangements. The wider reconstruction will continue beyond the summer closure. Further information is available from Bordeaux Métropole.
Bordeaux Métropole is undertaking a major refurbishment of 62 of its earlier Alstom Citadis 402 trams. These vehicles formed part of the fleet acquired for the opening and early expansion of the modern network.
The work is being carried out by ACC M at Clermont-Ferrand and is intended to extend the operational life of the trams from approximately 30 to 40 years. It includes comprehensive technical renovation intended to maintain reliability, passenger comfort and the long-term availability of the fleet.
The first refurbished tram returned to Bordeaux during 2025 for testing and approval before re-entering passenger service. The programme is expected to continue progressively until 2029, with vehicles removed from service and returned to the network in batches.