From Paris to Lyon: The First Victory

The Paris-Lyon route was chosen carefully. At 427 kilometers, it was long enough that the TGV's speed advantage over cars and planes would be decisive, but short enough to be economically viable. The route also connected France's two largest cities through the prosperous Burgundy region.

When commercial service began in September 1981, the impact was immediate. Journey time from Paris to Lyon dropped from nearly four hours to exactly two hours. Business travelers who had flown or driven switched to rail. But unexpectedly, the TGV also created new demand. People began making trips they wouldn't have considered before. Lyon effectively became a suburb of Paris for some commuters.

The numbers told the story: within two years, the TGV was carrying 15 million passengers annually. Air France discontinued most Paris-Lyon flights. The initial infrastructure investment, criticized as excessive, was recovered faster than even optimists had predicted.