Tram systems in Lyon
Lyon is a major city in eastern France, situated where the Rhône and Saône meet. Its historic districts include the Renaissance streets of Vieux Lyon, the central Presqu’île and the slopes of Croix-Rousse, associated with the city’s silk industry. This heritage forms part of Lyon’s UNESCO-listed historic site, while the former industrial district of Confluence reflects the city’s more recent redevelopment. Lyon is also well known for its food and traditional bouchon restaurants.
Public transport operates under the TCL brand, combining four metro lines, two funiculars, trams and an extensive bus network, including trolleybuses and services branded as trambus. The Navigône river shuttle provides an additional connection along the Saône.
Lyon Part-Dieu and Perrache are important railway and urban transport interchanges. The separate Rhônexpress airport tram links Part-Dieu with Lyon Saint-Exupéry Airport and its adjoining high-speed railway station.
Modern trams returned to Lyon in January 2001 with the opening of lines T1 and T2. The urban network now has seven lines, numbered T1–T7, serving Lyon and neighbouring municipalities.
The network connects the Confluence district, Perrache and Part-Dieu with university campuses, hospitals and residential areas across the south and east of the metropolitan area. Routes extend through Villeurbanne, Bron, Saint-Priest and Vénissieux, while T3 runs east to Meyzieu. T5 serves the Eurexpo exhibition centre and T7 provides a connection to the OL Vallée stadium and leisure complex in Décines.
T6 forms an orbital route from Debourg through the eastern districts to La Doua–Gaston Berger. Its northern extension through Villeurbanne opened in February 2026, adding connections between existing tram and metro corridors.
Rhônexpress complements the urban network with an express airport service from Part-Dieu, calling at Vaulx-en-Velin–La Soie and Meyzieu Z.I. before reaching Saint-Exupéry.
TCL — RATP Dev Lyon
SYTRAL Mobilités is the transport authority responsible for Lyon’s tram network. RATP Dev Lyon operates the TCL trams, metro and funiculars under a public service contract that began in January 2025.
Rhônexpress — RATP Dev
RATP Dev also operates the Rhônexpress airport tram service for SYTRAL Mobilités. The service has its own passenger information website and ticketing arrangements.
Lyon’s first tram network was developed by the Compagnie des Omnibus et Tramways de Lyon (OTL), founded in 1879. Horse-drawn services began in October 1880, with the first route linking Bellecour and Vaise. Further lines followed, creating a network serving Lyon and neighbouring communities.
Electric traction spread during the 1890s, and the OTL gradually absorbed competing operators. By the early twentieth century, trams were a familiar feature of Lyon’s streets, with routes extending from the central districts into the surrounding suburbs.
From the 1930s, buses and trolleybuses increasingly replaced tram services. This process continued after the Second World War, and the last urban tram ran on line 4 on 30 January 1956. The suburban Lyon–Neuville service, known as the Train Bleu, survived until 30 June 1957, bringing the original tram era to an end.
For more than four decades, Lyon’s public transport developed around buses, trolleybuses and the metro, whose principal network opened in 1978. Trams eventually returned as a complementary mode, providing surface connections between the city and its expanding suburbs.
The modern system opened on 2 January 2001 with two lines. T1 connected Perrache with the university campus at La Doua and IUT Feyssine, while T2 linked Perrache with Porte des Alpes through Bron. These routes established the foundation of the present network.
The first extensions followed soon afterwards: T2 reached Saint-Priest Bel Air in 2003, and T1 was extended south from Perrache to Montrochet in the developing Confluence district in 2005.
T3 opened in December 2006 between Part-Dieu and Meyzieu, reusing the former Chemin de fer de l’Est de Lyon railway corridor. T4 followed in April 2009, initially linking Jet d’Eau–Mendès France with the southern districts around Vénissieux. The separate Rhônexpress airport service began operating in August 2010, sharing part of T3’s route before continuing to Saint-Exupéry.
T5 opened in November 2012, adding a route from Grange Blanche through Bron to Eurexpo. Further extensions strengthened the existing network: T4 reached Part-Dieu and La Doua in 2013, while T1 crossed the Rhône to Debourg in 2014.
T6 opened in November 2019 between Debourg and Hôpitaux Est–Pinel, introducing an orbital connection across the southern and eastern districts. T7 followed in February 2021, providing a regular service between Vaulx-en-Velin–La Soie and the stadium district at Décines–OL Vallée.
In February 2026, T6 was extended north through Villeurbanne to La Doua–Gaston Berger. The extension added ten stops and connected the eastern hospitals, Grandclément, Gratte-Ciel and the La Doua campus, further developing the network’s orbital role.
Lyon’s tram system uses conventional steel wheels on standard-gauge track, with an electric supply of 750 V DC collected from overhead wires. The urban routes operate mainly on reserved tram corridors, with road crossings controlled by traffic signals.
The eastern corridor has a different character from the street-based routes. T3 follows the former Chemin de fer de l’Est de Lyon railway alignment, which is also used by Rhônexpress between Part-Dieu and Meyzieu. Beyond Meyzieu, the airport service continues on a dedicated section designed for speeds of up to 100 km/h.
The network’s maintenance facilities have expanded alongside the tram system. A new centre at Saint-Fons opened in June 2026, providing additional storage and maintenance capacity and preparing for the arrival of line T10. It can accommodate 30 trams of 43 metres or 45 trams of 32 metres.
The TCL urban network uses Alstom Citadis articulated trams in two principal lengths: approximately 32 metres and 43 metres. The vehicles have low floors, air conditioning and passenger information systems, with the longer trams providing additional capacity on the busiest routes.
The shorter vehicles are Citadis 302 trams, while the longer vehicles are Citadis 402s. Longer trams have been used on T3 and T4 for several years, and their deployment has expanded to T2 from September 2025 and T1 during 2026. Platform alterations have enabled these routes to accommodate the larger vehicles, while shorter trams have been redeployed elsewhere on the network.
Rhônexpress uses a separate fleet of six Stadler Tango articulated vehicles, designed for the airport express service. Their interiors include luggage storage and a greater emphasis on seated accommodation, while their 100 km/h capability allows faster running on the dedicated section beyond Meyzieu.
Line T9 is under construction between Charpennes and Vaulx-en-Velin–La Soie. Its route will serve the La Doua campus, Les Buers and Saint-Jean in Villeurbanne, then cross the canal de Jonage to reach the centre of Vaulx-en-Velin and the Mas du Taureau district before continuing to La Soie.
The approximately 11.3 km route will have 19 stops, including 12 new stops, and will share existing tram infrastructure on its approach to Charpennes. It will provide connections with metro lines A and B and several existing tram routes. Opening is currently expected in spring 2027.
Line T10 is under construction between the Gerland district of Lyon and Gare de Vénissieux, passing through the centre of Saint-Fons. The new line will be approximately 8 km long and have 14 stops, improving tram access to residential and employment areas in the southern part of the metropolitan area.
The route will connect with metro lines B and D and tram lines T1 and T4. SYTRAL Mobilités’ latest construction programme schedules technical testing for early 2027, followed by trial running in spring and passenger service in summer 2027.
A further orbital route, T8, is being developed between Vaulx-en-Velin–La Soie and Gare de Vénissieux. The proposed line would serve the Terraillon district of Bron and the Porte des Alpes university campus, linking residential areas, educational facilities and employment centres across the eastern suburbs.
The current proposal comprises approximately 8.1 km of route and 13 stops, using some existing tram infrastructure. The project remains in consultation and detailed study, with a public inquiry scheduled for summer 2027. The latest published programme envisages construction between 2028 and 2030 and a provisional opening in early 2031.