an electric network

In order to transport 90% of passenger traffic and 85% of freight traffic, Réseau Ferré de France uses the 15,164 kilometres of its network that are fitted with electric lines.

A company at the forefront of progress, we are constantly working to adapt our network and our installations to technical evolutions. Since the 1950s, the 50 hertz 25,000 volt single-phase current has been replacing the use of the low-voltage 1,500 volt DC systems.
 

A 25,000 volt system, for today and tomorrow
A total of 9,138 kilometres of our network, including all of the high speed lines, are covered by the 50 hertz, 25,000 volt single-phase current.
Modern and advantageous, it means that substations can be spaced approximately 80 kilometres apart and that the transfer of energy is a simpler process. Less heavy to transport, the electrical currents pass through a simple transformer and along a lighter catenary.

The 1,500 Volt system: a more limited technique
5,904 kilometres of our lines to the south of Paris are still supplied by this technically limited system. Not only is it more expensive, since it needs power substations every 12 kilometres, this method requires a heavy-weight catenary only able to correctly deliver the high currents required by the traction motors.
 

Operating on a dual current basis (1,500 volts and 25,000 volts), the French network uses specially adapted traction motors which work in unison. If we add the fact that the cross-border networks use different supply systems still, we see that the management of connections with these networks can be expensive and complex.
 

Our network will have grown by 600 kilometres of extra electric line by 2010.
We are working on expanding our offer through the opening of new lines and by scheduling electrification projects as part of the State/Region Strategic Plans (CPER).