Chad TGV High Speed Train Souvenir Sheet of 4 stamps Mint NH

The TGV (French: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train") is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by the SNCF, the state-owned national rail operator. The SNCF started working on a high-speed rail network in 1966 and later presented the project to President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing who approved it. Originally designed as turbotrains to be powered by gas turbines, TGV prototypes evolved into electric trains with the 1973 oil crisis. In 1976 the SNCF ordered 87 high-speed trains from GEC-Alstom. Following the inaugural service between Paris and Lyon in 1981 on the LGV Sud-Est (LGV for Ligne à Grande Vitesse; "high-speed line"), the network, centered on Paris, has expanded to connect major cities across France (Marseille, Lille, Bordeaux, Strasbourg, Rennes, Montpellier) and in neighbouring countries on a combination of high-speed and conventional lines. The TGV network in France carries about 110 million passengers a year.

Like the Shinkansen in Japan, the TGV has never experienced a fatal accident during its operational history; the onboard security systems are among the world's most advanced. The high-speed tracks, maintained by SNCF Réseau, are also subject to heavy regulation. Confronted with the fact that train engineers would not be able to see signals along the track-side when trains reach full speed, engineers developed the TVM technology (electromagnetic impulses transmitted by track), which would later be exported worldwide. Whenever a train engages emergency braking, all following trains are requested within seconds to reduce their speed; if a driver does not react within 1.5 km (0.93 mi), the system overrides the controls and reduces the train's speed automatically. The TVM safety mechanism allows TGVs using the same line to depart every three minutes.

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