Gare de Lyon

Lyon railway station had been under construction since 1847. It was officially opened to the public on 12 August 1849 under the name "Railway station from Paris to Montereau" (fr. Embarcadère de chemin de fer de Paris à Montereau). It was a boardwalk building designed by architect under the direction of Baron Haussmann, and at the time of its construction it was awaiting arbitration between the French state and the first Compagnie des chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée (PLM) company over its management. PLM did not like the fact that Mazas prison was being built next to the station. The company hoped that it could extend the railroad branch line to Place de la Bastille. But instead of that, Lyon Street (fr. Rue de Lyon) was laid out between the station and Place de la Bastille. The station was expanded many times as the volume of rail traffic increased. As the station became unsuitable for further expansion, a second Gare de Lyon building was constructed in 1855 by the design of the architect François-Alexis Cendrier. The new building was operated by the newly established Paris à Lyon (PL) railway company. The station was built on a high embankment to protect it from the floods of the Seine. It had only five tracks, occupying a large hall long and wide. A portico to the right of the entrance to the arrival hall connected the station itself to the Bâtiment X, the central administration building on the side facing Boulevard Mazas. The station was partially destroyed by fire during the Paris Commune in 1871 and later rebuilt. By 1900, in time for the 1900 World's Fair, a new thirteen-track Gare de Lyon building was constructed, designed by the Toulon architect Marius Toudoire and decorated with a large fresco by the Marseille artist Jean-Baptiste Olive, depicting some of the cities to which one could take a train from this station. It was inaugurated on 6 April 1901 by Émile Loubet, president of the Third Republic. On multiple levels, it is considered a classic example of the architecture of its time. Most notable is the large clock tower atop one corner of the station. The station houses the Le Train Bleu restaurant, which has served drinks and meals to travellers and other guests since 1901 in an ornately decorated setting. On 27 June 1988, in the Gare de Lyon rail accident, a runaway train crashed into a stationary rush-hour train, killing 56 people and injuring a further 55. A fire broke out on 28 February 2020, that was reportedly started by Congolese protesters. The station was completely evacuated. On 18 December 2021, the station became the terminus of the newly-inaugurated Milan–Paris Frecciarossa. On 3 February 2024, a stabbing at the station injured 3 people. Facade of Paris-Gare de Lyon (5629782550).jpg|Outside the station, with its large clock tower Albert Maignan - Fresque Le train Bleu.jpg|19th century wall painting by Albert Maignan inside the Le Train Bleu restaurant, in the main hall of Paris-Lyon station Paris_Gare_de_Lyon_hall_panorama.jpg|Inside the station's Hall 1 File:Gare de Lyon in Paris.jpg File:A croud surges forward to board a Ouigo 1200 seat train at the Gare de Lyon in Paris.jpg|Passengers crowding the platform while boarding a Ouigo high-speed train ==Train services==

From Gare de Lyon train services depart to major French cities such as: Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Montpellier, Perpignan, Dijon, Besançon, Mulhouse, Grenoble and a number of destinations in the French Alps. International services operate to Italy: Turin and Milan; Switzerland: Geneva, Zürich, Basel and Lausanne; and Spain: Barcelona. The following services currently call at Gare de Lyon: • High speed services (TGV) • Paris–Lyon • Paris–Avignon–Marseille • Paris–Avignon–Toulon–Cannes–Nice • Paris–Lyon–Montpellier–Béziers–Narbonne–Perpignan • Paris–Lyon–Montpellier–Perpignan–Girona–Barcelona • Paris–Grenoble • Paris–Bellegarde–Annemasse–Evian-les-Bains • Paris–Lyon–Chambéry–Turin–Milan • Paris–Chambéry–Aix-les-Bains–Annecy • Paris–Dijon–Besançon–Belfort–Mulhouse • Paris–Dijon–Besançon-Viotte • Paris–Dijon–Chalon-sur-Saône • Paris–Lyon–Saint-Étienne • Paris–Valence–Avignon–Miramas • Paris–Chambéry–Albertville–Bourg-Saint-Maurice (winter) • High speed services (Milan–Paris Frecciarossa) • Paris–Lyon–Chambéry–Modane–Turin–Milan • Paris–Lyon-Part-Dieu–Lyon-Perrache • High speed services (TGV Lyria) • Paris–Bellegarde–Geneva (–Lausanne) • Paris–Belfort–Mulhouse–Basel (–Zurich) • Paris–Dijon–Lausanne • Regional services Paris–Montereau–Sens–Laroche-Migennes • Regional services (Transilien) Paris–Melun–Moret–Nemours–Montargis • Paris RER services A • Saint-Germain-en-Laye–Nanterre-Universite–La Defense–Gare de Lyon–Vincennes–Boissy-Saint-Leger • Cergy le Haut–Conflans–Sartrouville–La Defense–Gare de Lyon–Vincennes–Val-de-Fontenay–Marne-la-Vallee (Disneyland) • Poissy–Sartrouville–La Defense–Gare de Lyon–Vincennes–Val-de-Fontenay–Marne-la-Vallee (Disneyland) • Paris RER services D • Creil–Orry-la-Ville–Goussainville–Saint Denis–Gare du Nord–Gare de Lyon–Combs-la-Ville–Melun • Goussainville–Saint Denis–Gare du Nord–Gare de Lyon–Juvisy–Ris–Corbeil • Châtelet–Gare de Lyon–Juvisy–Grigny–Corbeil–Malesherbes • Gare de Lyon–Juvisy–Grigny–Corbeil–Melun ==In films==

The station has appeared in the following films: • 1972: Travels with My Aunt, directed by George Cukor • 1988: ''L'étudiante'', Starring Sophie Marceau • 2005: The Mystery of the Blue Train, an Hercule Poirot mystery novel by Agatha Christie (and its TV adaptation) • 2007: ''Mr. Bean's Holiday'', directed by Steve Bendelack • 2010: The Tourist, directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck ==See also==