November « 2014 « modelrail.otenko

21Nov/140

France: TGV La Poste

It's off to Europe for christmas and I intend on hunting down the odd train. The first on the research list is reminiscent of Dr Yellow from Japan: TGV La Poste. This service is an express freight EMU (not unlike the M250 of Sagawa Transport) for the French Postal Service based on the TGV series.

Source: RailPictures.net: Special TGV La Poste "Operation Pieces jaunes" Blois - Tarbes. [Author: LM]

I'm going to use this page as a thinking-out-loud scratchpad to record the information I'm able to obtain. The goal is to grab a shot of it in action down the line and then one (at least) in the depot near Gare De Lyon in Paris.

NOTE: It seems this effort will be futile... the sun won't rise until around 8am and the train is due to run only during the dark-hours. this link has the timings for 2015.

Web References

Forum LR PRESSE : TGV La Poste
Photos-de-Trains.net : Horaires TGV postal départ de Cavaillon
Trains en Voyage : Gares et horaires du TGV La Poste?
Benelux Spoor : TGV fotoplekken en dienstregeling TGV La Poste
Railfan Europe : TGV La Poste
virtualglobetrotting : Half-consist stored at Villeneuve-St George
La Poste to streamline courier products and invest in rail transport
Bad news... will the service still be running in January 2015?
French HS (6): TGV-LaPoste, Postal TGVs
More information in English on the service.
The TGV railway La Poste will cease operation in 2015
Could be a bad translation... but looks like the service will run until at least mid-2015.
Railpictures : SNCF TGV SE 952 La Poste at Crisenoy - Daniel Minaca
Someones entire sightings for 2008
Trains Francais : Calendrier TGV La Poste
Hints on what times are during daylight
Simtrain-FR : info TGV poste.
e-train forum: Latest timings

YouTube - Croisement entre un TGV La Poste et un TGV Duplex
TGV La Poste passes a TGV Duplex near Penne-sur-Huveaune, between Marseille and Nice
YouTube - Postal TGV at high speed (Unknown Location)

Timetables

From all of the above data, I've managed to scrape together the following timetable of the services. From the links, you can tell that this data is old... really old. I am under the impression that the service will be wound-down in 2015, but hope that one or two of the services below will be running in January.

There's a double-up on times around Macon for most of the services. It seems that the train arrives at Macon-Loché, heads in to Macon-ville and then back out on it's way via Macon-Loché once more.

TGV La Poste	6990	6991	6992	6993	6994	6995	6995	6996	6997	6998
T = Tuesday	M-F	M-F	T-S	M-F	T-F	T-S	T-S	T-S	M-F	SAT
Paris-gare-de-Lyon (parc postal)	0137	2006	0748	2242	1806	0330	0518	0758	1932	0604
Bifur-de-Créteil		2016			1756			0748
Yerres (bifur de Massy)		2017			1754			0746
Bifur-de-Chevry-Cossigny (pointe Ouest du triangle de Coubert)		2024			1748			0740
Bifur-de-Solers (pointe sud du triangle de Coubert)		2025			1747			0739
Moisenay/Crisenoy	0103	2028	0719	2301	1744		0535	0736	1951	0526
Montereau	0045									0504
Sens	0029	2044			1728			0720		0446
Laroche Migennes	0012									0439
PRS Pasilly	2354	2102	0638	2338	1710		0616	0702	2028
P.R.S n° 18 de Toutry (viaduc A 6)		2106			1705			0657
Le-Creusot-Montceau-Montchanin	2328	2127	0554	0010	1645		0648	0637	2057
P.R.S n° 24 de Cluny		2138			1635			0627
Col-de-Bois-clair					1634			0626
Viaduc-de-la-Roche					1633			0625
Dijon-ville						0554 0556				0320 0322
Chagny										0251
Macon-Loché-T.G.V					1628 << 1622 Merges with 6624 @ 1600 from Lion-Part-Dieu		0711	0620	2111
Macon (parc postal)	2307	2149	0527	0032	1550 1624			0556 0616		0214
Macon-Loché-T.G.V		2144			1528 1536			0545 0552		0146 0207
TGV Lyon St Exupéry (TGV)					1514		0739		2128
Valence TGV					1446		0800		2202
Bif Lapalud							0820		2135
Pierrelatte					1416		0821		2224
Avignon Fontcouverte					1352		0846		2244
Cavaillon					1325	0901	0907	0324	2253

Plotting the path

This wasn't easy... I have no idea if the map to the left is the correct path... it seems that the train travels on the highspeed direct line in some places and then diverts to the local SNCF lines in others?

From what I can tell, the train travels further south than Cavaillon. But all timetables only reference it to there.

From the YouTube link at the start of this article, you can tell that the service seems to travel all the way to Nice? Or at least past Cavaillon?

If anyone can help, I'd love to get this map correct for anyone else wanting the information.

The plan...

Based on the timings above, it's going to be really hard to see this thing in daylight, moving, whilst being based in Paris. My best bet will probably be to head down to the RER stations 'Maisons-Alfort Alfortville' or 'Le Vert de Maisons' early in the morning and hope for the best. It'll be mid-winter, so lighting will be low.

I'll post again once executed.
Update: Paris, January 2015.

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19Nov/140

Melbourne August/September 2014

Only two months behind... here's the highlights from South Yarra over August/September this year.

Metro's Inspection Train

Metro have converted an old passenger car into an inspection vehicle. It's known as IEV102 has equipment for monitoring the lines it is dragged over. You'll always see it top-and-tailed by T classes.

BG Steel with Green G

A green Pacific National G spent a weekend on the steel train.

Steamrail to Eltham

Not quite South Yarra, but venturing out to see a steamer very early was rewarded by a surprise sighting of the other Metro inspection vehicle: IEV100.

Railside in Cremorne

There is a pretty cool spot just before the Yarra river in Cremorne to take morning photos.

Batman St Overpass: Cremorne

And then there's the Batman St overpass, but it's a little too under-the-level.

Carpark ramp at end of Palmer Parade

If you keep wandering down Batman St and take a right on Palmer Pde, you'll find a carpark (that looks abandoned.) It has a ramp that gives you an elevated view towards South Yarra Station. Of course, you're then stuck in the wires and the shot Northbound gets a lens full of sunlight in the morning.

Y class to Long Island

But then, something cool happened... BL Steel with a Y Class loco transfer! This supposedly happens once a year.. the loco gets swapped out for routine maintenance back in Dynon.

Between Hawksburn and South Yarra

Turns out that you can get some pretty clean shots facing towards Hawksburn... although you really have very little time to get ready. Zero visibility doesn't give you too much warning.