Tram systems in Rouen
Rouen is a historic city on the River Seine in Normandy, northern France. Known for its Gothic cathedral, medieval streets and connections with Joan of Arc, it is also an important port and a major commercial and university centre. The wider urban area extends across both banks of the Seine and into the surrounding valleys.
Public transport across the metropolitan area is brought together under the Réseau Astuce brand. The network includes the tramway, marketed locally as the Métro, alongside TEOR bus rapid transit services, FAST bus routes and other local bus services. TEOR provides complementary connections across the urban area; despite their T-prefixed route numbers, these services use buses.
Rouen-Rive-Droite railway station provides regional and longer-distance rail connections. It is served by the tramway at Gare–Rue Verte, linking the railway with the city centre and the southern suburbs.
Rouen’s modern tramway opened in December 1994. Although branded as a métro, it is a conventional tramway with a tunnel beneath part of the city centre and surface running elsewhere. Five of its 31 stops are underground, giving the central section a different character from the routes through the southern suburbs.
The network has a Y-shaped layout, with both services sharing the route from Boulingrin through central Rouen and across the Seine. South of the river, the routes divide at Saint-Sever: one continues to Georges Braque in Le Grand-Quevilly, while the other runs through Sotteville-lès-Rouen to Technopôle in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray. Théâtre des Arts is an important interchange between the tramway and TEOR services.
Réseau Astuce — Transdev Rouen
The tramway is operated by Transdev Rouen on behalf of Métropole Rouen Normandie, the authority responsible for the metropolitan public transport network.
Rouen’s first tramway opened on 29 December 1877, initially using steam traction. Steam proved expensive and poorly suited to the city’s streets, and by 1884 it had been replaced by horse-drawn operation. Electric trams were introduced in 1896, allowing the network to expand across Rouen and its surrounding suburbs.
The separate tramway companies were brought together under the Compagnie des Tramways de Rouen in 1910. The resulting network connected the city centre with communities on both banks of the Seine, becoming an important part of everyday life in the growing industrial area.
Bus replacement began in 1930, and severe damage during the Second World War further weakened the tramway. Although some services continued after the war, the network was progressively closed. The last trams ran on 28 February 1953, leaving buses and trolleybuses to provide the city’s public transport.
Growing traffic congestion prompted renewed interest in rail transport during the 1980s. Rouen chose a tramway with a tunnel beneath the historic centre and surface routes through the southern suburbs. This combination gave rise to the Métro name still used locally.
The modern tramway opened to passengers on 17 December 1994. Its Y-shaped route linked Boulingrin with Georges Braque in Le Grand-Quevilly and Hôtel de Ville de Sotteville in Sotteville-lès-Rouen, sharing a central section across the Seine on the Pont Jeanne-d’Arc.
In September 1997, the Sotteville branch was extended to Technopôle in Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, bringing the tramway to the Madrillet university and technology district. The underground Palais de Justice stop also opened that year, completing the central group of five underground stops.
Rouen currently has 2 tram lines, which are listed below.
| Line | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Line 1 runs between Boulingrin and Georges Braque via Gare–Rue Verte, Théâtre des Arts, Saint-Sever and Saint-Julien. |
| 2 | Line 2 runs between Boulingrin and Technopôle via Gare–Rue Verte, Théâtre des Arts, Saint-Sever and Hôtel de Ville de Sotteville. |
Rouen’s tramway uses standard-gauge track (1,435 mm) and operates as a Y-shaped network, with a shared central section and two southern branches. There are 31 stops, including five underground stops. Although marketed as the Métro, the system uses conventional steel-wheeled trams, with surface running and road crossings outside the tunnels.
The tramway passes beneath the historic city centre before crossing the Seine on the Pont Jeanne-d’Arc. Power is supplied at 750 V DC through overhead contact wires, collected by roof-mounted pantographs.
The fleet comprises 27 Alstom Citadis 402 trams. These articulated vehicles are approximately 44 metres long and 2.40 metres wide, with low floors throughout, air conditioning and audible and visual passenger information. Each tram can carry approximately 280 passengers.
The first Citadis trams entered passenger service on 23 June 2012, beginning the replacement of the original Alstom TFS fleet. Their greater capacity addressed growing passenger demand and required infrastructure adaptations, including strengthening work on the Pont Jeanne-d’Arc.
The fleet is based at the Saint-Julien depot in Le Petit-Quevilly, connected to the Georges Braque branch. The depot provides overnight storage and facilities for cleaning, inspection, servicing and repairs.
Métropole Rouen Normandie is studying a new tramway between Demi-Lune in Maromme and Boulingrin in Rouen. It would replace part of the TEOR T2 bus route, including the busy shared corridor between Mont-Riboudet and the CHU Charles-Nicolle hospital. The aim is to increase capacity and improve reliability where existing bus services are approaching saturation.
The tramway remains one of two options, alongside reorganising the TEOR network and introducing larger electric buses. The Métropole has indicated that a new tramway would not enter service before 2036. Further studies and consultation are required before a final choice is made.
Longer-term plans also consider adapting the existing tramway to serve the proposed Rouen Saint-Sever railway station on the left bank of the Seine. This would provide a high-capacity connection between the new station, the city centre and the existing Rouen-Rive-Droite station.
Options include diverting the Technopôle branch through the new station and reorganising the network into two crossing routes, potentially with a new Seine crossing and a connection towards the CHU. The eventual layout and delivery timetable remain dependent on further studies and progress with the railway station project.