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PO, Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans

The Compagnie du chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans (PO) is one of the five major private railway companies whose networks merged in 1938 with those of the State and Alsace and Lorraine railway administrations to form the SNCF. In 1934, the PO formed a financial, commercial and technical community of interest with the Compagnie des chemins de fer du Midi et du Canal latéral à la Garonne for the joint operation of their respective networks. It served the whole of south-west France with the Gare d'Austerlitz as its network head in Paris (and, in the first part of the 20th century, the Gare d'Orsay). Before the creation of the SNCF, it operated a network of over 11,700 km. The law of 1838 granted the line from Paris to Orléans and branches. Statutes of the company were  approved by the royal ordinance the same year. From a technical point of view, the PO company about 1900 was noted for its numerous developments and improvements to its machines, mainly with the aim of saving money. The PO was one of the pioneering networks of electrification with the Midi in 1900. This electrification was carried out using a third lateral rail supplied with 600 volts DC.

November 1st 2024

 

 
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