Réseau Breton

The Réseau Breton (RB) is a , standard gauge, and former , metre gauge, railway in Finistère, France, with a few kilometres of line in Côtes d'Armor, Ille-et-Vilaine and Morbihan. The hub of the system was Carhaix. The metre gauge lines were built with the capacity to be easily converted to standard gauge if necessary. Brittany in the mid nineteenth century was a largely agricultural area. the quarrying of slate and granite also took place. Forests in inland areas had previously supplied timber for construction of buildings and shipbuilding at the larger coastal ports, but this industry had largely declined as the source material was exhausted and the land turned over to agriculture. Apart from roads, the first transportation system constructed in Brittany was the Canal de Nantes à Brest, started in 1811 and completed in 1842. Although the canal could carry high volumes of freight, it was slow, relying on horse-drawn barges. The first standard gauge railways in Brittany were the Chemin de fer de Paris à Orléans (CF PO) line from Paris to Quimper, which was completed in 1863 and the Chemins de fer de l'Ouest (CF de l'Ouest) line from Paris to Brest, which was completed in 1865. The CF PO built a line from Quimper to Châteaulin and Landerneau, where it connected with the CF PO. This line was completed in 1867. The CF PO built a line from Auray to Pontivy, which was completed in 1864. In 1872, the CF de l'Ouest built a line from Saint Brieuc to Pontivy, where it connected with the CF PO line. These lines left central Brittany an area devoid of railways, and served only by the Canal de Nantes à Brest. In 1880, the concession to build an Intérêt Générale system in Brittany was given to the CF de l'Ouest. It was agreed that the lines would be built to metre gauge, but provision would be made for conversion to standard gauge should the need arise. Morlaix would be the administrative headquarters, but Carhaix would be the main station, with engineering workshops, locomotive depôt and carriage workshops.