Clermont-Ferrand tramway

Clermont-Ferrand tram in the early 1900s.

The first tramline in Clermont-Ferrand was put into service on January 7, 1890[6] by the Electric Tramway Company of Clermont Ferrand. The Clermont-Ferrand tramway distinguished itself from other systems as it was the first to use electricity in France.[7]

The first 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) metre gauge tram track ran from Montferrand to Jaude. Shortly after this, an extension was opened to Royat on l'Avenue des Thermes. A total of 22 two-axle tramcars were put into service. In 1902, a section between Jaude and Place Delille, via Place Gaillard, opened. In 1913, a link to Cermont-Ferrand Train Station via Salins, and a short section between Place Gaillard et Fontgiève, were put into service.

Before the First World War, the Beaumont line was extended to Ceyrat. In 1928, a link to Aubière was created, following the route of Line 3 on Avenue Léon Blum.

At the end of the Second World War, the tram suffered many setbacks. As cars began to become more popular, the government did not focus any effort on public transportation systems, but instead on the expansion of roads and highways. The tramlines were gradually replaced by buses.

The last tram in Clermont-Ferrand ran on 17 March 1956.[8] After this, public transportation in the city was solely by bus.[6] In many places, the rails were paved over to make way for cars.

In the 1970s, concern over the consequences of automobile use increased. In the 1983 Elections, a tramway was proposed by Socialist mayor Roger Quilliot in his re-election campaign.[9]

However, the tram project was only seriously considered starting in 1990. The development of the system was given to SOFRETU (now Systra), which proposed the building of two tramlines: one north–south line (which would eventually become Line A), and an east–west line. In 1996, bids were solicited for the rolling stock for the tramway. Alstom proposed that Alstom Citadis trams be used for the system, and Alstom Citadis trams were bought for Line A on 14 October 1996.[10] Thus, the first tramway followed SOFRETU's proposal, which corresponded to the present day Line A.

However, due to pressure from the Chamber of Commerce and industries in Clermont-Ferrand (mostly Michelin), this initial tramway project was halted.[11] A revised project was developed in 2000.

New bids were solicited in 2002, and the only bidders were: Irisbus with their Civis trolleybus, Bombardier with their TVR rail transit system, and Lohr Industrie with their Translohr system. The contract was ultimately won by Lohr Industrie due to pressure from the government and from Michelin.

Following a derailment during the testing phase, the inauguration of the first section was delayed by a month, but finally opened in November 2006.[12] The rest of the line opened on August 27, 2007.[13]

The line was closed for seven weeks in 2013 to renovate many stations platforms due to their deterioration.[14]