Lyon–Geneva railway

• 23 June 1856: Opening of the section from Lyon Saint-Clair to Ambérieu-en-Bugey.
• 7 May 1857: Ambérieu to Seyssel
• 18 March 1858: Seyssel to Geneva (Cornavin)
• 1 June 1859: Lyon Saint-Clair to Lyon Brotteaux
• 24 November 1859: link to Lyon Guillotière and Lyon Perrache

The line was progressively electrified to 1500 V DC

• 14 December 1952: Lyon Perrache and Lyon St Clair.
• 22 September 1953: Lyon-Saint-Clair to Culoz.
• 16 December 1953: Culoz to Bellegarde.
• 20 September 1956: completion of the electrification with the section Bellegarde to Geneva. The inaugural train was hauled by CC 7121 (at the time the world rail speed record holder).

In subsequent years the line has undergone various modifications, the most important of which are:

• 1980, opening of the cord line at Culoz allowing Genève - Grenoble - Valence traffic to pass through directly at 60 km/h avoiding the reversing movement in Culoz station.
• 27 September 1981 first commercial Paris - Geneva TGV service via Bellegarde, Culoz, Ambérieu et Bourg-en-Bresse.
• 12 June 1983 last day of operation of Lyon-Brotteaux station.
• 13 June 1983 first day of operation of Lyon-Part-Dieu station.
• May 1987: Opening of the branch to Geneva airport. Most of the traffic West from Cornavin became long distance Swiss trains terminating at the airport in place of the relatively sparse traffic to the SNCF network. Accordingly, the main lines were reelectrified to the Swiss standard of 15 kV 16.7 Hz while a third line dedicated to SNCF traffic used a new single track line running parallel through to Cornavin.
• 12 December 2010: reopening of the Ligne du Haut-Bugey for TGV traffic to Paris, diverting TGVs from the Bellegarde to Ambérieu section.

• 
  TER at Seyssel-Corbonod station, en route from Lyon to Geneva.
• 
  TER from Geneva to Valence reversing at Culoz station.

All the different types of traffic mentioned in the introduction run on this section. Direct passenger services from Bellegarde to Geneva are provided by French TGV or TER trains, while stopping services are provided by the Swiss Rhône Express Régional service. Because it was electrified and signalled to a French system but operated in part by the Swiss Railways there were several unusual hybrids on the line, illustrated in the photos, including

• Swiss EMUs running on 1500 V DC and using the French train control system
• French style signals built by the Swiss signal maker Integra

• 
  TGV in Cornavin station.
• 
  Bem550 emerging from St Jean tunnel on 1500 V single line section between Vernier and Cornavin
• 
  The single line 1500 V section toward Lyon on the left running alongside the 15 kV double track (on the right) toward the airport.
• 
  Vernier-Meyrin Station with French train control relay clearly visible in the foreground
• 
  Signal near Vernier-Meyrin station. This is a French Carré signal built by Integra to the French system. Note the Swiss style octagonal backplate.
• 
  Bourdigny Station (disused) with RABe 552 RER for la Plaine
• 
  Satigny Station with RABe 552 RER for Geneva Cornavin
• 
  La Plaine station in 2011. The old station building was demolished in early 2019. TGV 6576 en route from Geneva to Paris.
• 
  Gare de Fort l'Ecluse Collonges. The clock works, although it's on summer time in winter. In the left background, the Divonne line climbs away steeply
• 
  Longeray viaduct seen from Léaz-Longeray junction, with a Paris bound TGV coming from Evian
• 
  Léaz-Longeray junction seen from the road above
• 
  Grenoble bound TER emerging from the South portal of the Cret d'Eau tunnel

Suburban traffic on the Geneva- Bellegarde section is increasing steadily[1] and the single track section is expected to become a serious bottleneck. The southern branch of the Geneva RER, the CEVA will be electrified to 25 kV 50 Hz, so the 1.5 kV DC electrification of the Geneva to Bellegarde section is a third voltage for regional trains. To alleviate these two problems, two engineering projects have been carried out, the first being to modify the double and single lines between Cornavin and the junction to the airport for bidirectional operation on all three tracks with either 25 or 15 kV, and the second to reelectrify the Bellegarde to Geneva section to 25 kV AC.[2] The works were completed in August 2014, and the Bellegarde to Geneva section is entirely under 25 kV. Between la Plaine and Geneva, the signals are all Swiss, controlled from Geneva and allowing bidirectional operation. The Bem 550 and 'Flirt' 524 EMUs have been replaced by 'Flirt' 522s and 'Colibri' 562s

• 
  Upgrades to Geneva Bellegarde section
• 
  Masts in place for the future 25 kV overhead wires at Bourdigny looking toward Satigny. A Geneva bound FLIRT has just left Satigny
• 
  New 25 kV catenary at Bellegarde station
• 
  Voltage indicators on tracks 5, 6 and 7 westbound at Geneva station

All platforms will be lengthened to 160m to allow for longer trains. The project was supposed to be finished by end 2019, with an estimated cost of 56mio CHF, financed by the Canton of Geneva. As of December 2022, most of the stations are complete.

• 
  Gare Zimeysa temporary platforms Oct 2018
• 
  Demolition of la Plaine Station building January 2019

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