the tortillard (the slow train)

After the creation of the Paris-Rouen-Le Havre lines and the Rouen-Dieppe line, a vast quadrilateral was left with no railway network.

The local population called for railway connections to maintain the important industries in the valleys of the Saane and the Vienne since the absence of railways was leading to industrial decline in these areas.

On June 19 1906 an agreement was signed between the prefect of Lower Seine and the Parisien engineer, Jean Laborie, who was already running other lines in the Eure department, in Algeria and elsewhere. This agreement led to the creation of two new metric (narrow gauge) lines, measuring 1 metre in width instead of the 1.445m.used on national lines. The first line ran between Ouville la Rivière and Motteville along the valley of the Saane and the second between Ouville la Rivière and Clères along the valley of the Vienne, passing through Bacqueville and Tôtes.

The line was communal between Ouville la Rivière and Gueres where there was a junction for the two lines.

The operation was solely at the risk and peril of the network operator. If it was profitable the profits were shared between the operator and the department, if it was unprofitable there was no funding from the department.

The Ouville - Motteville line was opened on March 16, 1912 and the Ouville - Gueres line on April 30, 2013.

In Clères a station was built for the Tortillard opposite the Dieppe-Rouen line station with a turntable enabling the trains to turn around and change direction.

From the very beginning there were problems; the number of passengers on the three daily return trips (plus one on Sundays and national holidays) was low and the freight traffic was less than expected.

The 34.7 km line had a difficult itinerary through valleys and with a climb from the valley of the Varenne, a ramp of 25°from the valley to Brennetot and another of 23-25°from Varenneville-Bretteville to Clères. The journey normally lasted one and a half hours with 16 stops along the lines.

Financial difficulties built up during the First World War and the operator asked the department to buy back the company. On May 11 1925 the department bought the network for 50000 francs.

The money problems persisted and on November 1 1936 the Clères Bacqueville line was suspended and then disaffected on August 24 1939, SATOS coaches taking up the transport of passengers. In 1945 the station at Clères was transformed into a Civil Engineering office and the one at Gueres became a town hall with other stations being reused for various assignments.

In 1950 the metallic bridge that allowed the Tortillard to cross over the Rouen-Dieppe line was dismantled and in 1974 its pillars were used to replace the new road bridge, which replaced the old brick one, too narrow and dangerous for road traffic.

During the second world-war the turntable was transformed into along-distance cannon carriage by the German army and when it was no longer of use it was finally buried.

And now you can follow the Ouville-la-Rivière/Dieppe line along the 'Route du Tacot (an old banger) de la Vienne’, now a railway hiking trail.