1668 mm (Spain) 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) (France & Switzerland)
Electrification
3000 V DC (Spain) 1500 V DC (France & Switzerland)
The Catalan Talgo was an international express train that linked Geneva, Switzerland, with Barcelona, Spain from 1969 to 2010.[1][2][3] It was named after the Spanish region Catalonia and the Talgo equipment it used.[4] It was an extension and upgrading of a predecessor train, Le Catalan,[1] a first-class-only French (SNCF) Rapide train that had been in operation since 1955 but running only between Geneva and the stations nearest the Spanish-French border, connecting with a second-class-only "autorail" trainset to and from Barcelona. The national railway network of Spain, Red Nacional de los Ferrocarriles Españoles (RENFE), was using Iberian gauge for all of its main lines, while those of France and Switzerland use standard gauge. As a result of this break-of-gauge, train journeys between Geneva and Barcelona consisted of two separate parts, with travelers having to change[5] from a French to a Spanish train or vice versa at the border—at Portbou (alternatively written as Port Bou) on southbound trains and at Cerbère on northbound trains.[6] In 1968, this was resolved with the introduction of the Talgo III RD trainsets, which featured variable gauge wheelsets.[7] At Portbou station,[1] the wheel spacing of each passenger carriage was adjusted by a gauge changer for the difference in gauge, and passengers no longer had to change trains.[1][2] After successful test runs,[8] the Catalan was extended from Port Bou to Barcelona as a through train on 1 June 1969, becoming the Catalan Talgo and upgraded to a Trans Europ Express (TEE).[1] Most other rail journeys through this border crossing continued to require a change of train at Cerbère station or at Port Bou,[1] as most trains did not use Talgo III RD trainsets.
^ abcdef"Stop Press" (changes taking effect). Cooks Continental Timetable (June 1969 edition), p. 6; also pp. 71, 106, 236. London: Thomas Cook & Son, Ltd.
^ abEspaña en el Trans Europ Express. (PDF) (in Spanish)Vía Libre, la revista del ferrocarril, No. 67 (July 1969), pp. 4–5. Linked from this page on the website of Via Libre magazine, dated 15 February 2013. Retrieved 2013-03-03.
^Cite error: The named reference trains d'europe was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^TEE, p. 18.
^La Légende des TEE, p. 274.
^Cooks Continental Timetable (July 1968 edition), pp. 236, 238. Thomas Cook & Son, Ltd.
The CatalanTalgo was an international express train that linked Geneva, Switzerland, with Barcelona, Spain from 1969 to 2010. It was named after the...
Talgo (officially Patentes Talgo, SAU) is a Spanish manufacturer of intercity, standard, and high-speed passenger trains. Talgo is an abbreviation of...
Canaletto Carl Maria von Weber Carlo Goldoni Carlo Magno Corona Caravaggio CatalanTalgo Champs-Élysées Christian Morgenstern Cinque Terre Cisalpin Citadella...
Toulouse-Matabiau (evening train) 27 May 1970 29 September 1984 TEE 70-71/72-73 CatalanTalgo Geneva-Cornavin – Barcelona 1 June 1969 22 May 1982 TEE 13/14 (later...
discontinues the Silver Comet passenger train service. June 1 – The CatalanTalgo Trans Europ Express begins providing a through service between Barcelona...
Canaletto Carl Maria von Weber Carlo Goldoni Carlo Magno Corona Caravaggio CatalanTalgo Champs-Élysées Christian Morgenstern Cinque Terre Cisalpin Citadella...
Canaletto Carl Maria von Weber Carlo Goldoni Carlo Magno Corona Caravaggio CatalanTalgo Champs-Élysées Christian Morgenstern Cinque Terre Cisalpin Citadella...
was put on the line linking Geneva to Marseille. 1969 saw the arrival Catalan-Talgo trains on the creation of a Trans-Europ-Express link between Geneva...
Canaletto Carl Maria von Weber Carlo Goldoni Carlo Magno Corona Caravaggio CatalanTalgo Champs-Élysées Christian Morgenstern Cinque Terre Cisalpin Citadella...
Canaletto Carl Maria von Weber Carlo Goldoni Carlo Magno Corona Caravaggio CatalanTalgo Champs-Élysées Christian Morgenstern Cinque Terre Cisalpin Citadella...
Trenitalia Paris (Lyon) – Torino – Milan (Central) Until December 2011 CatalánTalgo 70/71 Elipsos Montpellier (Saint-Roch) – Barcelona (Estació de França)...
1981, necessary for hauling the Talgo III-RD trainsets of Renfe on the two services using this stock: TEE Catalan-Talgo Geneva - Barcelona, from Geneva...