Rouen Saint-Sever, the new station finalized after a century of waiting!

To alleviate the current Rive Droite station congestion and develop urban trains in Normandy and the LNPN, the new Rouen Saint-Sever station has finally been approved.

For locals or those who know the city, Rouen station is a very compact layout for a metropolitan area of 500,000 inhabitants. Located in the city center and spread across multiple levels, it is no longer suitable for growing traffic and commuting needs. In addition to being a main axis connecting Paris and Le Havre, regional ambitions are on the rise.

Thus, a new station is planned, on the left bank this time, in the Saint-Sever neighborhood, and has been since… 1913! Yes, a century ago, the general council was already considering expanding the existing stations – including the main Rouen Rive-Droite – or even replacing them. The Rouen Saint-Sever station was already emerging as a solution, but was destroyed in 1944 during World War II. Back then, people already talked about the saturation of the Rive Droite station…

A century later, the official Rouen Saint-Sever station!

100 years later, the project has finally been approved, after initial studies began in 2003. It is announced in a statement from the Normandy Region, the Seine-Maritime department, the metropolitan areas of Rouen, Le Havre, Caen, and SNCF, signaling good news. According to authorities and the national train company, this Rouen-Saint-Sever station “will improve services for travelers and freight transport by providing greater railway capacity”.

This future main station in Rouen will also become “a city-region station”, welcoming several types of public transportation, including “regional and peri-urban connections”, as well as “rail freight carried by the port traffic of HAROPA”, linking Le Havre, Rouen, and Paris. Current traffic of 6.5 million travelers per year is expected to double to nearly 13 million within ten years.

What new train lines in Rouen and Normandy?

For current and future travelers, this is an improved TER network connecting the cities of Le Havre, Caen, Louviers, and Dieppe, as well as the Ligne Nouvelle Paris Normandie (LNPN). This line would reduce travel times along the Seine by implementing a high-speed line (LGV).

More uncertain is the possibility of a RER-type network for Rouen, aligning with President Emmanuel Macron’s wish to see RER systems in the 10 largest French metropolitan areas. However, for now, this remains a wish from a coalition of associations advocating for a virtual Metropolitan Express Service (SEM). The planned date for the future Rouen Saint-Sever station is 2033, at best.

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