Trams in Nantes: Where the french tram renaissance began (2025)

On January 7, 1985, 27 years after the discontinuation of the former tram service, Line 1, France's first modern tram, began operations in Nantes. Its overwhelming success led to the opening of trams in more than 20 other French cities in the following decades. Line 2 opened in 1992, and Line 3 was introduced in 2000. Another new branch, which will be served by Lines 6 and 7, is currently being built. In addition, tram-trains have been operating between Nantes, Clisson and Châteaubriant since 2011 and 2014 respectively. The TFS type, developed by Alstom and intended as the standard French tram, was delivered to Nantes in 46 units until 1994. Starting in 1992, the high-floor trams were extended with a low-floor midsection. The TFS was never sold to other cities, as the TFS2 low-floor tram was developed instead. Starting in 2000, 33 low-floor Incentro trams from Adtranz and Bombardier were delivered to Nantes for the introduction of Line 3. Since 2012, twelve trams of the CAF Urbos 3 type are in service on Line 1. The delivery of 61 new Citadis 405 trams has begun in 2024, which will gradually replace the TFS in the following years. 0:00 Intro 0:42 Line 1 with Citadis, Urbos, Incentro, and TFS 7:24 Line 2 with Incentro and TFS 12:06 Line 3 with Incentro and TFS 19:06 Ride in a TFS tram