The line has had a chequered history leading to closure on 1 November 1968.  It is now operated by the Association Voies Ferrées du Velay as a tourist heritage railway.

For me, this one was a bit of a double bluff.  A drive down through France to holiday by the Mediterranean was carefully planned to take in some interesting overnight stops along the way.  Stops that ‘coincidentally’ took in French metre gauge action.

The first stop took in the Blanc-Argent (see Chemin du Fer Blanc-Argent in 1984), the second was planned to take in the Vivarais.  I knew about the Tournon to Lamastre section, and that’s where I was headed.

Until I got to St Agrève.  Is that a level crossing?  And a station?  With a Billard Autorail sat in the platform?  I couldn’t believe my eyes, and the actual coincidence just wasn’t believed for one moment.  Hence the double bluff.

The Billard was no. 222, an A150-D2 built in 1939 for the CFD Vivarais by Billard at Tours. It is the sole surviving example of four similar autorails.  It is equipped with a 180 Willème diesel engine and is 20.6m long.

The whole place felt 'right'.  Sure it was a preserved railway.  But at the same time it still felt real.

The visit to St Agrève was brief.  The dull, grey weather of the previous day persisted, so it wasn’t long before the journey down towards Lamastre and the day’s real objective restarted.

See all the pictures of the Voies Ferrées du Velay.