I decided to ride the T8 tramway again today to see the branch to Villetaneuse as well as the main line to Épinay in regular operation. I took first the branchline to Villetaneuse. Nothing special of note although the section beyond the terminus has a sharp curve and goes to single track, presumably leading to the car maintenance and storage yards. I returned to the main line and rode out to Épinay and back to St. Denis Gare. Many of the traffic regulation problems seem to have been fixed although there were a number that still need attention, maybe the running time could be reduced by a minute or so. Some work has been done at stations although some signs had been placed at the wrong locations so that one station bore two names. A squad of inspectors was out to ensure people were tapping in.
St. Denis Gare is a great place to watch trams with T1 crossing T8, both double track. However there were a lot of people lounging around, deals going down etc. I was very careful where I went and took care getting out my camera. The trams on T1 are short and always crowded east of St. Denis. I decided to go west to Courtiles which is less busy. This section has been open some two years now and has a good interchange with the Metro.
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T8 at Épinay
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| T1 at St. Denis Gare |
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| T8 trams on the diamonds at St. Denis Gare |
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| T8 tram for Courtilles approaching the diamonds at St. Denis Gare |
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| T1 trams at Courtilles. |
There was a piece on the TV3 news this evening about fare evasion on RER line B. When the SNCF put on a team of fare inspectors the ticket machine receipts go up 40%. It would seem like a good idea to increase these inspectors considerably. Jumping over turnstiles and dodging in after a paying customer is endemic in Paris. It is particularly easy on the Metro because there is no exit check.
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