Societe Anonyme Des Chemins de fer
d’Interet Local de Vallee de la Yeres
A history
Touffreville-sur-Eu | Sept-Meules | Fallencourt | St Riquier |
For ease of research the layouts are set within easy drive of
Calais hence the Societe Anonyme Des Chemins de fer d’Interet Local de Vallee De
La Yeres (VdlY) [Yeres Valley Light Railway]. |
Secondaire railways are very roughly the French equivalent of light railways. They were developed to stimulate the rural economy particularly farming and graded general, local and tram. Funding came from central government, departments and communes (parish). Their history is both interesting and contradictory! They grew twelve fold between 1870 and 1912. At the end of 1912 an additional two and a half thousand kilometres were under construction or authorized but most of these were prevented from coming to fruition by the First World War. The War had a major impact on existing lines with war damage, deferred maintenance, mobilization of staff and the removal equipment, in certain cases entire railways. After the War secondaire continued to expand reaching their peek mileage in about 1925 with the last secondaire opening in 1928. Improving road transport meant the next decade was one of rapid decline. In 1938 the transport Co-ordination law caused many secondaire to closed or lose their passenger service. The Second World bought the same problems as the First but to already run down railways. Services on the lines that survived the 1938 law were as far as possible intensified and some freight only lines reintroduced passenger services. At the end of the War many lines were in a rundown state and closed. By 1947 mileage was down to a third of it peek and by 1962 it was the similar to 1870. |