Mediterranean TGV - Catenary

While Colas Rail Ltd’s subsidiary company E.T.F laid the track for the final leg of the journey (330km) in a joint venture with Cogifer, Colas Rail (FR) completed the challenging task of electrifying the line (2 x 25 kV), providing the design and installation.

This involved the installation of a system which can deliver the 25,000 volts each train needs through a complex overhead wiring network of cables, support structures and associated electrical equipment along the entire section from Orange near Avignon to the major coastal part.

Colas Rail Ltd’s experience of working on TGV projects in France since 1979 has meant the continuous development of the electrification process.  Our engineers designed and installed an improved system for the Mediterranean line, which allows trains to travel at even higher ‘cruising’ speeds - around 320 kph (200 mph).

Another result of this evolution was the LAMA vehicle (Lorry Automoteur Auto Enrailable), a self-propelled mobile platform which can travel on or off rails. It was developed by Colas Rail Ltd to speed up installation work and similar vehicles, based on its design, and are now at work on rail projects in several countries around the world. 

With the completion of the Mediterranean TGV, it is now possible to go by rail from the centre of Paris to the centre of Marseille - 1,000 kilometres away in the South of France - quicker than you would by catching a plane (total journey time).

The project was a high-profile contract that involved the electrification of 330km of simple track, from Bollene (Vaucluse) to Marseille via Avignon, for the south-east branch, then Marseille for the south-east branch, and to Manduel (close to Nimes) for the south-western branch.