Grand Paris Express Line 15 West South

The Société des Grands Projets has awarded the first design-build contract for the Grand Paris Express to the IntenCités15 consortium, led by VINCI Construction Grands Projets. It concerns the southern section of line 15 West, which will connect Pont de Sèvres station to La Défense.

BACKGROUND

At the heart of Europe’s largest urban mobility project, the contract covers the design and construction of 14 km of tunnels, 5 stations (Saint-Cloud, Rueil – Suresnes Mont-Valérien, Nanterre La Boule, Nanterre La Folie and La Défense), station sidings at Nanterre La Folie and 16 service structures.

Extending the southern section of line 15, this first section of line 15 West will interconnect with Transilien lines L and U at Saint-Cloud and La Défense, with RER line E at Nanterre La Folie and with RER lines A and E, metro line 1 and Transilien tramway line T2 at La Défense. It will also provide an efficient service to the La Boule district of Nanterre.

TECHNICAL ASPECTS

The 14 kilometres of tunnels run through one of the densest urban areas in France. One of the main challenges is to carry out the work on the stations and service structures (the access shafts to the tunnel for maintenance and passenger evacuation) in extremely tight spaces, located in the heart of residential or business areas.

This is the case for La Défense station, which has to be built in an extremely limited space, right next to Europe’s leading business district, the 4 Temps shopping centre and several large housing estates. The works zones are adapted to each stage of the project so that the works can be completed without disrupting road traffic, a major issue in this sector.

At Saint-Cloud, a “quadrilobe” structure was designed for the station. This shape minimises wall deformation by taking advantage of the arch effect, thereby optimising the geometry of the structure. This is a technical and logistical feat on a site with a footprint barely larger than the station box, just a few metres from the SNCF tracks, a hospital and the Institut Curie.

IMPACT

With 20% of the business entrusted to French SMEs, 2,000 people employed at the peak of the activity and 10% of the worked hours in the context of social integration, the contract is imbued with an ambition for the socio-economic development of the regions.

VINCI will also mobilise its “Chantiers et Territoires Solidaires” endowment fund, which supports community projects to promote access to employment and the creation of social links in the communities crossed by the Grand Paris Express construction sites.

Similarly, we are committed to a responsible approach to reducing the environmental footprint of the site, and will be using mainly low-carbon and very low-carbon concretes.

With service scheduled to begin in 2031, this section of line 15 will help achieve modern, sustainable and reliable mobility for the residents of the Ile-de-France region.

Project expert

Client: Société des Grands Projets

Partners:

The IntenCités15 consortium – Chantiers Modernes Construction/Dodin Campenon Bernard/ETF/VINCI Energies (SDEL Infi), Razel-Bec, Fayat Energie Services, Ingérop, Artelia, JFS Architectes, Grimshaw, AREP Architectes, Archi 5 Prod and Philippe Gazeau, Architect

Key figures

Execution dates: 2024 – 2031

Line 15 south - Fort d’Issy-Vanves-Clamart to Villejuif Louis Aragon (Grand Paris Express)

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