Cité du Train SNCF Railway Museum
Cité du Train (City of Trains) is SNCF’s railway heritage museum located in Mulhouse, France, and is 1 of the 10 largest railway museums in the world. During my visit in Alsace, I made it a point to visit Cité du Train as I’ve heard about it for about half my life now, and it is one of the most complete railway museums in the world.
The colourful façade of Cité du Train.
Heading in to Cité du Train.
Cité du Train Ticket Counter
Tickets can be purchased on the spot at Cité du Train’s ticket counter just inside the main entrance.
My ticket for Cité du Train. The full rate for adults cost €14. More details here.
Heading into the exhibition proper.
As there is really a lot of exhibits to see, and to spare you the agony of loading almost 400 edited pictures, and also to not reveal everything in Cité du Train and spoiling your future visit, the pictures and descriptions here will be summarised and not all exhibits will be featured.
Starting the exhibition with a familiar-looking Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits logo on the wall, but with Cité du Train on it instead.
The Show Circuit
The Cité du Train visit starts at The Show Circuit. The Show Circuit is located in a dark shed with exhibits focusing on various times of the past. There are 6 themes at The Show Circuit, namely, the railway and the holidays, the railway and the mountains, the official trains, the railway and the war, the railway workers and the world of travel.
The first exhibit was the Micheline XM 5005, Compagnie des Chemins de Fer de l’Est, 1936 under “the railway and the holidays”. To improve passenger comfort on railcars, Michelin used rubber tyres (unsurprisingly) in replacement to regular metal wheels on the bogies.
Next up is the Voiture voyageurs Mixte C5Dt 14068, Compagnie du Paris-Orléans, 1911 which can be visited.
The Voiture voyageurs Mixte C5Dt 14068 consists of a freight section, 1st Class section, and 3rd Class section.
Inside the 1st Class compartment.
Luggage of the 1910s are also displayed on the luggage rack above the seats.
The toilet on board Voiture voyageurs Mixte C5Dt 14068.
Heading into the 3rd Class section.
The 3rd Class section is less padded and seats are in an open carriage. Luggage racks are still conveniently available above seats.
The old door locking system on the Voiture voyageurs Mixte C5Dt 14068.
The exhibition moves on to “the railway and the mountains” with Chasse-neige ZR1 Aurillac, Compagnie du Paris-Orléans, 1909, a snowblower train.
Locomotive à vapeur Consolidation 140 A 259, Compagnie des Chemins de Fer du Nord, 1928 is placed in a derailed bombed position under “the railway and the war”.
The official Locomotive à vapeur 121 A 340 Forquenot, Compagnie du Paris-Orléans, 1883 hauling the Voiture-salon des aides de camp n° 6 du Train Impérial, Compagnie du Paris-Orléans, 1856.
The Voiture-salon des aides de camp n° 6 du Train Impérial, Compagnie du Paris-Orléans, 1856 royal coach.
The Locomotive à vapeur Mountain 241 A 1, Compagnie des Chemins de Fer de l’Est, 1925, the first Mountain locomotive in Europe.
The Voiture-restaurant n°3348, Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits, 1928, part of “the world of travel”.
The builder plate and coach details on the Voiture-restaurant n°3348.
The cast Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits logo on the Voiture-restaurant n°3348.
Next is the Motrice de métro Sprague M 1354, RATP, 1935 in a mockup tunnel.
The driving cab of Motrice de métro Sprague M 1354.
The interior of Motrice de métro Sprague M 1354.
The route map of Paris Métro Line 9 on board Motrice de métro Sprague M 1354.
More coaches can be viewed from the platform walkway.
The exhibition moves on to The Platforms of History in the next shed.
The Platforms of History
The second part of Cité du Train is on the history of the French railway from 1844 till today.
There is an exhibition room with smaller artefacts before the exhibition gives way to more trains.
The Platforms of History exhibition hall is in daylight with the sun shining through the roof. The exhibition starts with Locomotive à vapeur 232 U 1 Hudson Marc de Caso, SNCF, 1949 which I initially got confused as to why a Mallard was there.
The Locomotive à vapeur 231 Pacific n°3.1192 Chapelon Nord, Compagnie des Chemins de Fer du Nord, 1936 with the Flèche d’Or (Golden Arrow) headboard on the Paris to London service, crossing the Channel by ferry.
The Locomotive à vapeur 111 Buddicom n°33 Saint-Pierre, Compagnie de Paris à Rouen, 1844 in front of a grand-looking buffer stop.
The Locomotive électrique BB E 1 Boîte à sel, Compagnie du Paris-Orléans, 1900 is the first electric locomotive in France, launched in 1900.
The Autorail rapide Bugatti Présidentiel ZZy 24408, Réseau de l’Etat, 1933, arguably one of the more popular exhibits since it’s a Bugatti train.
The Locomotive à vapeur 231 H 8 Pacific, Compagnie du P.L.M, 1939 decorated with French flags.
The Steam locomotive 141 R 1187 Mikado, SNCF, 1945 based somewhat on the USRA Light Mikado.
Moving on to Locomotive électrique CC 7107 1,5 kw cc, SNCF, 1953 with electric locomotives being more common.
Locomotive électrique CC 40101 quadricourant TEE, SNCF, 1964 and Locomotive électrique CC 6572 1,5 kv cc, SNCF, 1975 on the Trans Europ Express (TEE) routes of the 1960s and 1970s.
The Passenger Buffet Car A 3RTU Grand Confort behind Locomotive électrique CC 6572.
The A 8TU INOX “Mistral 69” behind Locomotive électrique CC 40101.
The Motrice Turbotrain RTG T 2057, SNCF, 1974 is the predecessor to high-speed trains with speeds of up to 200km/h.
The speed records get broken with the Train à Grande Vitesse, more famously known worldwide as TGV.
Perhaps the most iconic train of the current generation is the Motrice TGV Paris Sud-Est 61 “orange”, SNCF, 1982.
The side ventilation panels for the engine has been replaced with glass so the inner workings are visible from outside.
A mockup of the TGV Euroduplex driver’s cab is placed behind Motrice TGV Paris Sud-Est 61 “orange”, thus ending the train displays at the current generation.
The driver’s cab of TGV Euroduplex inside the mockup.
Following the real trains, the path follows to a diorama room with train models.
Plenty of train models on display in a glass case.
The diorama also depicts French railway scenes.
While SNCF primarily operates trains, there are also SNCF ferries to carry trains across waters to connect with other railway lines.
The Railway Panorama
Once done with the 2 halls and storyline, the exhibition moves on to outside with more trains.
There is an in-house traverser on the outside for the The Platforms of History shed.
There is also a turntable behind the traverser.
The Railcar ZR 15327, SNCF, 1967 outside the sheds.
The interior of Railcar ZR 15327 with individual seats in a 2+2 configuration.
The route map of Transilien Line N on board Railcar ZR 15327.
The MC3 cogwheel motor, Line 3 of the Lyon metro, 1978 outside Cluny station, a mini railway station at The Railway Panorama.
The signal box of Cluny station.
The Railcar Z 6181, SNCF, 1970 at Cluny station.
A side station named Musee-Ville is in front of Cluny station.
The platform of Cluny station with Railcar Z 6181 and Y 7199 shunter, SNCF, 1960.
Heading back into the building.
There are many other trains, displays, and scenes at Cité du Train but they are not written in this article. These are chosen as a small sample of the offerings of Cité du Train so that you hopefully won’t be overloaded with information and there will be more to explore when you visit Cité du Train.
Heading out of the exit after exploring Cité du Train.
Bookshop-Boutique
The final stop of the Cité du Train visit is at the Bookshop-Boutique just after the exit.
Books and souvenirs on French railways are available here.
There was an N-scale TGV inOui Euroduplex on sale which was tempting, but I skipped it in the end as the model was rather flat with printed lines rather than grooves.
There are also random Japanese train toys that you shouldn’t be buying from a French museum.
A nice selection of keychains and fridge magnets are available by the cashier.
Souvenir coins and an exclusive 0 Euro Banknote are also available. Euro Note Souvenirs (0 Euro Banknote) are approved and specifically developed for visitor attractions and tourist sites across the EU.
The Electropolis Museum is located just opposite the Cité du Train which you can buy a combined ticket with the Cité du Train for at a cheaper rate.
Conclusion
The Cité du Train is a very comprehensive railway museum about the railway history of France, touching on all aspects of time, terrain, class of passengers, and technology. I knew about Cité du Train for at least half my life now, and finally had the chance to visit it, leaving very impressed with the quality of displays and information provided, even though I don’t understand French. Cité du Train gives me confidence in the French way of preserving railway history extremely professionally, and I am reassured that overseas exhibitions like Once Upon A Time On The Orient Express at Gardens By The Bay, Singapore are just a small (and perhaps inaccurate) representation of what France has to offer.