Lille Getting Around

High speed rail network

Lille is an important crossroads in today’s Europe, lying on the Eurostar line to London and the French TGV network to Paris. Major cities such as Brussels, Marseille, Lyon, and Toulouse are also served from Lille, which has two train stations: Lille-Europe station (Gare Lille-Europe), and Lille-Flandres station (Gare Lille-Flandres).

Metro

The Lille Metros system is a driverless metro which opened in 1983, becoming the first automatic metro line in the world. It was the longest in the world until 2002, when it was surpassed by the Vancouver Sky Train. There are 60 stations, which go as far as the Belgian border.

Highways

There are five auto routes which pass by Lille, making it the densest section of highways in France after Paris.

Air traffic

Lille Lesquin International Airport is 15 minutes from the city centre, and is the twelfth most frequented French airport as far as passenger numbers.

Waterways

Lille is home to the third largest French river port after Paris and Strasbourg. The River Deûle has over 680 km of waters and connects to Northern Europe via the River Scarpe and the River Escaut (towards Belgium and the Netherlands).