Preserving our heritage railway trains
Join our volunteer team to continue our work to preserve our association's heritage railway veicule.
Since 1988, our association has been ensuring the preservation of Picasso-type railcars, as well as Caravelle-type railcars and shunters.
Our preserved materials
The first equipment to be preserved was the Picasso X3800 railcars, followed by the Caravelle X4630 railcars.
In recent years, we have added three shunters to our fleet.
Railcar "Picasso" X3838
The X3838 railcar was put into service on July 31, 1952.
After its withdrawal from service at the end of May 1987, and a trip to the Cévennes, it returned to the Ardennes in the spring of 1991 and operated the Mouzon-Stenay line until 2001, and since then on our current line.
In 2025, major maintenance will be carried out and will require withdrawal from service.
"Picasso" X3850 railcar
The Picasso X3850 railcar was put into service on January 28, 1953.
Deregistered at the Mohon depot, it was acquired by our association and has been in circulation since 1988.
Since 2024, the railcar has been out of service to carry out major maintenance on the engine and its bodywork.
Railcar "Picasso" X3898
Delivered to the SNCF in the summer of 1954 in Vitry le François, the X 3898 mainly carried out its service in the Eastern region (Vitry, Vesoul, Chalons) to end up in Mohon where it was taken out of service on September 30, 1982, without having undergone a "Major general overhaul", and therefore very close to its original condition.
It was then acquired by the Rhine Tourist Railway, then returned to private individuals who had it renovated in 1993, with the adoption of a green livery, with the aim of using it on the CFTA Bretagne (Guigamp-Carhaix).
In the meantime, the railcar runs on Dinant-Givet then Mariembourg-Treignes, before finally being transported to Provins in March 1997, waiting for the CFTA.
It was finally acquired by the CFTSA in 1999 and transferred to Attigny. It then ran on the tourist line until May 2002, when it ceased to run due to very restrictive regulations at the time.
However, we decided to keep it in working order and to run it regularly on our service roads.
In 2011, the regulations changed, and it became possible to consider putting it back into service. Work began, and would last a long time, depending on the financial and human resources of the association. The idea of restoring it to a condition and colors corresponding to the first "Picasso" delivered gradually gained ground.
The realization of all these efforts results in the return to "passenger" service for the opening of the 2024 season.
Railcar "Picasso" X3943
The Picasso X3943 railcar was put into service on June 21, 1955. The railcar has a first-class layout in the panoramic section.
Arriving in 2009, the railcar is privately owned and made available for use. The association maintains and services it for occasional use on the national rail network.
Diesel mutiple unit "Caravelle" X4647 - XR8441
The DMU X4647 and its trailer XR 8442 were put into service on October 12, 1972.
Coming out of the Crespin workshops in red and cream livery, the DMU underwent a major modernization financed by the Picardy region.
During its assignment to the Burgundy region, it lost its green livery to be covered with the new yellow and red or strawberry vanilla livery. After its deregistration on February 20, 2012, it was made available to the Bourgogne Franche Comté Railcar Association.
Owned by SNCF, the railcar is made available under agreement.
The association carried out maintenance to allow it to once again run on the national rail network. Its first outing was for the AJECTA festival in May 2023.
Diesel Multiple Unit "Caravelle" X4719 - XR 8716
This railcar was put into service in 1976 in a red and cream livery. Modernized in 1992, the vehicle features a green and white livery chosen by the Picardy region. Since 2009, the Caravelle has been made available to our association by the SNCF.
This railcar runs at a speed of 100 km/h on the national rail network and has a capacity of 108 seats.
Self-propelled boat "Caravelle" X4630 - XR8442
This self-propelled vehicle, owned by the SNCF, was made available to the association in
Lacking any interior fittings, its trailer is used as a training room.
Y6431 shunter
Put into service in 1954, the Y6431 shunter was decommissioned by the SNCF on December 12, 1991.
After its decommissioning, the shunter shunted grain trains, particularly at the VIVESCIA site in Monthois. Following the closure of the line to Challerange, the VIVESCIA group donated the shunter to our association in April 2020.
Y6610 shunter
Commissioned by the SNCF in 1954, the Y6610 shunter is the first example of the Y6400 type built by Decauville. After being decommissioned, the shunter was used on an industrial site in La Rochelle. Purchased by a local company, it was made available to our association.
Y7566 shunter
The Y7566 shunter was put into service on January 8, 1966. Its deregistration took place on January 28, 2009. Without being used on an industrial site in the Grand Est region, the shunter arrived by road at the Attigny site.