Transport in Réunion
Réunion possesses a network of highways, which cover a total distance of 2,784 km. Of that length, 2,187 km of the road system is paved. There are no roads going into the cirque of Mafate; thus transportation there has to take place by foot or helicopter.
Motorways
[edit]A system of highways that run between the main cities has been developed.
- Route national 1 (N1/RN1) connects Saint-Denis to Saint-Pierre, also connecting Le Port, Saint-Paul, La Saline Les Hauts and Saint-Louis. It has a length of 76 km.
- N2 connects Saint-Denis to Saint-Benoît, also connecting Saint-André. Its length is 34 km.
- N3 connects Saint-Pierre to Saint-Benoît, but the motorway only goes from Saint-Pierre to Le Tampon, with a length of 7 km.
Sea
[edit]There are two major ports in Réunion: Le Port and Pointe des Galets. There are six marinas. Réunion possesses a merchant marine of one ship with a weight exceeding 1,000 gt, which is a chemical tanker.
Airports
[edit]There are two airports on the island, of which both have paved runways. The main airport is the international Roland Garros Airport located close to Saint-Denis and the second one is the Aéroport de Pierrefond, located near Saint-Pierre in the south of the island.
Railways
[edit]There are no railways in Réunion, with the exception of a short tourist line, which was originally part of a larger rail network. A 42 km light rail project was cancelled in 2010, after a regional government change in 2010, mostly because the project was considered too expensive (€1.6 billion). The region's new president chose to fund a new coastal road instead.[1] In 2019 a new light rail system was proposed to link Le Barachois with the airport.[2]
Cable car
[edit]Due to huge traffic congestion, channelled by the rough topography on the main coastal road, public authorities invested in a cable car transportation system, linking two districts of Saint-Denis : Le Chaudron to Bois de Nèfles, with three intermediate stops.[3] Built by POMA, a leading French company in cable car systems,[4] it opened in March 2022. With 46 cabins, it is designed to transport up to 1200 persons per hour. This cable car is the first in the whole Indian Ocean.
References
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ "Réunion Tram-Train in jeopardy". International Railway Journal. 23 April 2010. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ "Consultation begins on Réunion tram project". International Railway Journal. 27 August 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
- ^ "Papang, the first cable car in the Indian Ocean put into service in Reunion". Habiter la Réunion. April 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
- ^ "The future urban cable car with an ocean view". POMA. 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
Further reading
[edit]- Boulogne, Eric (2005). Le petit train longtemps (in French). Le Mans: Ed. Cénomane. ISBN 2902808410.
- Robinson, Neil (2009). World Rail Atlas and Historical Summary. Volume 7: North, East and Central Africa. Barnsley, UK: World Rail Atlas Ltd. ISBN 978-954-92184-3-5.
External links
[edit]- Aéroport Roland Garros (Main airport)
- Images of tourist railway
This article incorporates public domain material from The World Factbook. CIA.
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