The Lazy
Railfan at Gare du NordThe Lazy
Railfan at Gare du NordWaiting hours in the cold and rain for the single daily freight on some remote line is all well and good, but let's face it: sometimes you just want to watch some trains without having to mount a major expedition. Obviously, it is handy if you can somehow arrange to live in a location where frequent activity is guaranteed; say near one or two major termini in some European city. This is the situation in which the Station Agent, entirely by accident of course, has found himself. The stations in question are Gare du Nord and Gare de l'Est, almost within sight of each other in northeastern Paris, and no more than a few dozen meters from our door. This proximity enables us, for example, to catch the Sunday-morning departure of the Venice-Simplon Orient Express from Gare de l'Est while our clothes go round and round at the laundromat on the Rue Chateau-Landon. That's for another time, however; here we tackle Gare du Nord, which is a bit more distant (one whole bus stop away).
In the past three years, long-distance services at Gare du Nord have been in transition, from mainly locomotive-hauled trains using conventional stock , to TGV-type high-speed equipment. The photos shown cover this transition period. For further background information about this historic station, here is a brief history courtesy of the Paris Pages.
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Before the TGV's took over, many Paris-Brussels trains were shepherded by big (for France), heavily stylized tri-current CC40000 series locomotives, built by Alsthom in the mid-60's . The 40109 is about to depart Gare du Nord with a string of Belgian stock on 31 Jan. 1994 (CC_4010.JPG; 72Kb). |
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During 1994-1996, the interior and western tracks of Gare du Nord were heavily refurbished to ready them for high-speed services. The camera location for this pic is now the upper-level departure area for Eurostar passengers. To the left of the frame is a TGV ready for departure to Lille; in the foreground is a BB66000 diesel in work train service. 30 Jan. 1994 (BB_6605.JPG; 81Kb). |
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For conventional trains, SNCF and SNCB shared haulage duties on the Paris-Brussels route. Here is SNCB 1501 resting at Gare du Nord near the end of its international career in Oct. '95 (BB_1501.JPG; 79Kb). |
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In the past several years, a group of venerable BB16000-series locomotives have been converted for push-pull service with new, blue-and-gray bi-level carriages, on trains to the "grandes Banlieues" (greater suburbs). The push-pull locos wear a special chocolate-brown paint scheme. The 16101, arriving with a train from Creil, meets a cousin on conventional stock at Gare du Nord in May 1994 (BB_1610.JPG; 97Kb). |
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Occasionally when we are feeling a bit less lazy than usual, we will hop a suburban train for the 10-minute ride to Saint-Denis , where we can watch the parade in an afternoon light that heavily favors southbound trains. Rakish BB15063 rolls through the station with a long train from Lille on 21 Sept. 1996 (BB_1508.JPG; 78Kb) |
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The near suburbs are served by a mix of recent bi-level stock and classic stainless-steel Z6000-series electric MU's. An example of the latter can be seen here passing under an imposing set of signals at Saint-Denis on 22 March 1996 (Z_140.JPG; 84Kb). |
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With little more sound than a rustle of air and a soft, high-pitched whine, a Thalys tri-current TGV bound for Amsterdam flashes through Sant-Denis on 21 Sept. 1996 (THAL_1.JPG; 78Kb) |
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Styling comparison between the noses of Eurostar 3215 and TGV 4517, both products of GEC-Alsthom, at Gare du Nord in October 1995 (EU_3215.JPG; 80Kb). |