The Léman Express connects the French departments Haute-Savoie and Ain with the Swiss cantons Waadt and Geneva. Official representatives of France and Switzerland, among others the federal councillor and UVEK head Simonetta Sommaruga, inaugurated it on 12 December 2019.
To symbolise the completion of this comprehensive infrastructure construction, the delegations of both countries tied two red bands together on the platform of the newly built railway stations Genève-Eaux-Vives.
The official inauguration ceremony was the kick-off for the large festival "Léman Express en fête" that took place on this weekend (14 and 15 December 2019) in the railway stations of the Léman Express. This was a joint celebration of the biggest cross-border rail network in Europe.
The heart of the urban rapid transit system is the route Genève Cornavin-Eaux-Vives-Annemasse (in short: CEVA). Bouygues Energies & Services was in charge of the "rail technology" order on this section for four years and was responsible for the development of all emergency exits. Apart from supervision, the services of Bouygues Energies & Services covered the overall project management, quality assurance and organisation of occupational safety. In addition, Bouygues was in charge of the planning, coordination and installation of conductor line systems (Colas Rail), cable systems, low voltage systems and technical tunnel equipment. The project was an excellent opportunity to demonstrate its many different fields of work and advantages as multitec professional.
The logistical challenges in the centre of the city of Geneva were a special feature of the project. Only thanks to a perfectly coordinated team and up-to-date daily planning of construction and start-up was it possible to meet the tight deadlines and simultaneously ensure quality.
The Léman Express is the biggest cross-border urban rapid transit network in Europe with 45 stations and 230 km route. The new urban rapid transit network was made possible by the eight-year construction of the centrepiece Genève Cornavin-Eaux-Vives-Annemasse (CEVA) and of five new stations Lancy-Pont-Rouge, Lancy-Bachet, Genève-Champel, Genève-Eaux-Vives and Chêne-Bourg) as well as the total renovation of the Annemasse station. The modernised infrastructure and newly built CEVA route, which endows the Léman Express with its cross-border dimension, cost almost CHF 2 billion. Construction of CEVA on the Swiss side was financed by the federal government and Canton of Geneva, on the French side by various public bodies with the support of the European Union.
