Prochain point : lat="49.008669" lon="1.917615"
Panorama of the city of Meulan
The importance of transport in the landscape
The Seine
In the eighteenth century, boats plied up and down the Seine. Some were huge. The marnois for example could carry 300 tonnes of cargo. Yet only two sailors were needed to operate it. The marnois disappeared in the first half of the nineteenth century with the arrival of boats more suited to navigate canals or canalised rivers.
In 1840 major work was undertaken: bays, locks, towing chains, etc. to improve navigation. In the nineteenth century nearly a hundred boats and smaller craft sailed by on the Seine. Cargo traffic, especially of food, was very important. Many of the boats also occasionally ferried passengers. The town never set up a port infrastructure, which would have encouraged development. But it still has a strong tradition of recreational and sports navigation.
The railway
In 1845 Rouen was connected to Paris along the left bank of the Seine. The town of Les Mureaux had a station then called Meulan station. On the right bank, a new line was built through Meulan in 1888, linking Paris to Rouen via Conflans-Sainte-Honorine.
After four years of work the line to Meulan was inaugurated on June 6, 1892. Parisians in search of green countryside were only forty-three minutes away and many came to spend Sunday in the area. The line was later extended to Rouen.
The "Old Rattletrap"
By 1890, a local network was needed. The first stretch was inaugurated in 1909. It was rather like a tram with several tramcars that ran on rails built on the road. It carried passengers and goods - particularly market garden produce - on their way to Les Halles market in Paris. In 1920-1930, it was jokingly known as the "Transcarotte". There were two main lines for Meulan: the Saint-Germain – Meulan line, via Orgeval, Ecquevilly and Les Mureaux from 1912 to 1948 and the line serving Tessancourt-sur-Aubette, Condécourt, Sagy, Longuesse, Vigny, Théméricourt and Magny from 1913 to 1947.
