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Paris Métro facts for kids

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Métro de Paris
Metro-M.svg
Paris Metro 2 Porte Dauphine Libellule
Info
Owner RATP (infrastructure)
Île-de-France Mobilités
(rolling stock)
Locale Paris metropolitan area
Transit type Rapid transit
Number of lines 16 (numbered 1–14, 3bis and 7bis)
Number of stations 302
Daily ridership 4.16 million (2015)
Operation
Began operation 19 July 1900; 123 years ago (1900-07-19)
Operator(s) RATP
Number of vehicles 700 trains
Technical
System length 214 km (133 mi)
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification 750 V DC third rail
Paris Metro Sign

The Paris Métro or Métropolitain (French: Métro de Paris) is a rapid transit system in Paris, France. The network is mostly underground. It has 19 lines, which together are 214 km (133 mi) long. There are 303 stations. 17 of these lines are Owens by RATP and 2 by Paris Airport.

The Paris Métro is a symbol of the city. Notable is its Art Nouveau architecture at the older entrances. It is the second busiest metro system in Europe, after Moscow. It carries 4.5 million passengers a day, and an annual total of 1.479 billion (2009).

The first line opened on 19 July 1900, during the 1900 World's Fair (Exposition Universelle). The system expanded quickly and the core was complete by the 1920s. Extensions into suburbs were built in the 1930s. The network reached saturation after World War II. The Métro introduced newer trains to allow higher traffic, but further improvements have been limited by the design of the network and in particular the short distances between stations. Besides the Métro, Downtown Paris and its urban area are served by a number of other transit systems.

Images for kids

  • Paris Metro construction 03300288-3

    During the initial construction of the Métro, the tunnels were excavated in open sites and then covered.

  • Gare de la Bastille 1

    Bastille station at the beginning of the 20th century

  • 1903-06, Station Chevaleret Métro aérien rive gauche (1)

    Construction of Chevaleret station, 1903

  • Paris zoom métro aérien station Jaurès, Paris avril 2014

    Line 2 near Jaurès station

  • Entrée métro de Paris Compagnie Nord-Sud

    A Nord-Sud station sign

  • Métro parisien état du réseau en 1939

    Paris Métro network in 1939

  • Viaduc Austerlitz Paris 18

    The Viaduc d'Austerlitz, crossing the Seine, is used by Line 5

  • Saint-Lazare-9-Salle-echang

    Saint-Lazare station

  • Metro stop Franklin D. Roosevelt, Paris 2013

    Franklin D. Roosevelt station on Line 1, refurbished in the late 2000s

  • Station métro Créteil-Pointe-du-Lac - 20130627 170810

    Pointe du Lac station, opened in 2011

  • Carte Métro de Paris

    Paris Métro map (2013)

  • Ticket t+ stif Paris 2017

    Ticket "t+"

  • Paris Metro 2 Porte Dauphine Libellule

    Hector Guimard's original Art Nouveau entrance of the Paris Métro at Porte Dauphine station

  • Metra in Paris (1105185529)

    Entrance to a Metra commuter rail station in Chicago, designed in Art Nouveau style as a replica of a Paris Métro station

  • P1040948 Paris XVI métro Passy rwk

    Overview of Passy station

  • Métro Ligne 6 crossing the Pont de Bir-Hakeim, Paris 10 April 2014

    Line 6 train running on the Pont de Bir-Hakeim near the Eiffel Tower

  • Metro de Paris - Ligne 4 - Porte d'Orleans - 4

    MP 59 Paris MétroParis Métro Line 11

  • MP73 RATP Rolling stock

    MP 73 Paris MétroParis Métro Line 6Paris Métro Line 11

  • Metro-Paris-Ligne-4-2-Stati

    MP 89 CA Paris MétroParis Métro Line 14

  • MP89 Ligne 4 - 02

    MP 89 CC Paris MétroParis Métro Line 4

  • Bastille metro automatique II

    MP 05 Paris MétroParis Métro Line 1Paris Métro Line 14

  • MP14 RATP Ligne 14

    MP 14 Paris MétroParis Métro Line 14

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Metro de París para niños

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