25% of this line, closed to passenger traffic since 1969, is located in Poitou-Charentes, with the remainder located in Pays de la Loire.
The reopening of the line was included in the Contract for Regional and State Projects (Contrat de projets État-région) for 2006-2007 and preliminary studies are completed. Work was scheduled to begin once the interregional budget was in place[1] but as of October 2014, the line has not been reopened and TER's operations between Niort and Fontenay-le-Comte are restricted to bus travel.[2]
Thouars – Parthenay – Niort line
This line has been closed to passenger traffic since 1980 but it is still used to transport empty TER trains every Wednesday. The trains are from the Bressuire – Thouars – Saumur line and they are sent to Saintes for maintenance. These trains are allowed to travel at speeds between 70 and 80 km/h, although higher speeds would be possible on certain sections of the line.[3]
Expansion of the La Rochelle-Rochefort line
With 11 trains a day added between in 2007 and 2008, the expansion of this line is meant to help curb the growing road traffic between the cities of La Rochelle and Rochefort.[4]
