A FURTHER 8·8 km of light rail line was inaugurated on August 31 in Valenciennes, with commercial services beginning three days later.
The second phase takes the existing 9·5 km line, opened in August 2006, from its original terminus at Dutemple into the neighbouring commune of Denain to a new terminus at Espace Villars. The extension serves seven new stops, with two more to be added subsequently. The line follows a 6·5 km alignment along the trackbed of the Somain – Péruwelz industrial railway, opened in 1838.
A third phase of openings is planned for the network, with construction likely to start in 2008 on a 14 km branch from Anzin to Vieux-Condé. A further branch over the border to Quiévrain in Belgium has also been proposed.
