BUS  SERVICES  IN  COTENTIN  IN  1934

A look back at the comprehensive network of country buses that existed in the mid 1930s

During the early and mid 1930s a considerable network of country and interurban bus routes operated in the Cotentin area of  the Manche département.  This was prior to the government's co-ordination and control of bus services in 1935, aimed at eliminating wasteful competition between operators which had sprung up in many places.  Sometimes this included a commercial operation in competition with a subsidised service contracted by the département.  The départemental subsidies were underwritten in part by the national government who after the end of the First World War encouraged the introduction of départemental networks as a way of completing a useful transport facility at a time when many railways had become too expensive and uneconomical both to build and to operate.  Further consideration to reduce direct competition between bus and train was implemented prior to the nationalisation of the regional railway comapnies in 1938 to form SNCF.  The outbreak of war in 1939 and the occupation of France had consequences for bus operation through shortage of materials and fuel.

Les Rapides de Normandie was a commercial competitive operation promoted by bus and car manufacturer Citroen in 1932 which lasted for only a few years in consequence of the rationalisation procedures mentioned above.  It became one of the three companies that came together in Caen (Calvados) in 1937 to establish Les Courriers Normands (now Bus Verts of Calvados snce 1981).  SGTD was the Société Générale des Transports Départementaux, a national company, founded in 1919, with regional operations in many French départements, often using the Courriers trading name (as in Courriers Normands).  SATOS was the associated bus company of the regional rail company (Société Auxiliaire des Transports Automobiles de l'Ouest).  Société Centrale de Chemins de Fer et d'Entreprises (SCF) and Chemins de Fer Normands (CFN) were Verney group companies which would later be reorganised locally as the modern day bus operator in the Manche département, Société des Transports de Normandie (STN).

Present day bus services are but a shadow of the services of seventy years ago, although in the département of Manche a new network of interurban and supporting local services is under active consideration by the authorities (summer 2006).

The information in the tables that follow is taken from the Indicateur Nationale du Tourisme Quillet of August 1934.

Line	Via	Length of journey	Operator
Caen - Cherbourg	Tilly-s-Seules or Bayeux, then St-Lô, Carentan, Montebourg, Valognes	4 hours	Les Rapides de Normandie (Caen)
Caen - Cherbourg	Tilly-s-Seules, St-Lô, Coutances, Periers, Lessay, La Haye des Puits, Bricquebec	4 hours 30 minutes	Les Rapides de Normandie (Caen)
Caen - Granville	Tilly-s-Seules, St-Lô, Coutances	3 hours 15 minutes	Les Rapides de Normandie (Caen)
Rapides de Normandie   bus stop sign		other routes included Caen-Le Havre;  Caen-Rouen; Lisieux-Le Havre; Lisieux-Le Mans.
Les Rapides de Normandie, Place du Théatre, Caen.

Line	Via	Length of journey			Operator
Valognes - Cherbourg	Montebourg, St Vaast-la-Hougue, Barfleur	2 hours 25 minutes			Chemins de Fer Normands (SATOS), Granville
Granville - Avranches	via Sartilly or via St Pair, Carolles, St Jean le Thomas	40 minutes or 1 hour 30			Chemins de Fer Normands (SATOS), Granville
Granville - Coutances	Bréhal, Hauteville-s-Mer	1 hour			Chemins de Fer Normands (SATOS), Granville
Coutances - Lessay	Coutainville, Pirou	1 hour 25 minutes			Chemins de Fer Normands (SATOS), Granville
Sourdeval - Avranches	Brecey	1 hour 40 minutes			Chemins de Fer Normands (SATOS), Granville
Mont St Michel - Pontorson	Beauvoir	20 minutes			Chemins de Fer Normands (SATOS), Granville
Cherbourg - St-Lô	Valognes, Montebourg, Carentan	2 hours 10 minutes			Société Centrale de Chemins de Fer et d'Entreprises (SATOS), Paris
Cherbourg - Villedieu	Bricquebec, Coutances	4 hours			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Cherbourg - Auderville	Urville, Beaumont-Hague	1 hour 10 minutes			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Valognes - Carteret	Bricquebec	1 hour 10 minutes			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Pont l'Abbé - Ste Mère Eglise	Chef du Pont	30 minutes			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
St Hilaire du Harcouet - Villedieu	Brécey	1 hour 40 minutes			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Mortain - Villedieu	St Pois	1 hour 35 minutes			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Avranches - St-Lô	Villedieu, Percy	2 hours			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Periers - St-Lô	Le Mesnil-Vigot	1 hour			SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Villedieu - Vire Villedieu - Coutances Villedieu - Mesnil Garnier	St Sever (Friday market service to Vire)   (Monday and Thursday market service to Coutances)   (Tuesday market circular service to Villedieu)				SGTD - Transports Départementaux de la Manche (Cherbourg)
Cherbourg - Dielette	Les Pieux, Flamanville	1 hour 5 minutes			Entreprise E. Schmidt, Cherbourg
Cherbourg - Portbail	Les Pieux, Carteret, Barneville-s-Mer	1 hour 40 minutes			Entreprise E. Schmidt, Cherbourg
To complete the picture we must remember that in 1934 several of the local railways were still in operation  - Cherbourg - Barfleur - Valognes; Sourdeval - Granville; Granville - Cérences; Pontorson - Mont Saint Michel

I would be very pleased to learn more about these routes if any French readers of this page have further information !

Si les lecteurs français de cette page pouvaient m'apporter des informations complémentaires, je leur en serais reconnaisant!

Follow this link to Buses of Cotentin 2004  -  later country bus routes in the département of Manche

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