Ligne de la Côte Fleurie

The railway line along the River Dives

The Ligne de la Côte Fleurie (English: Côte Fleurie railway line) is a railway line serving the towns of the Côte Fleurie, Calvados, France.

The railway line, which is approximately 20 km (12 mi) long, was built in sections between 1882 and 1884. The unelectrified line runs between Deauville and Dives-sur-Mer along the English Channel through countryside and is operated by Diesel multiple units.

The line was built in three sections between 1882 and 1884. The first section was built between Dives-sur-Mer and Houlgate in 1882 as an extension of a railway line from Mézidon-Canon on the main railway line between Paris and Caen. A second portion of the railway line was built from Deauville to Villers-sur-Mer later in 1882, as a spur of the main line originating from Lisieux on the railway line between Paris and Caen. The last section between Houlgate, then called Beuzeval, and Villers-sur-Mer opened in 1884.

Traditional service was steam trains from Paris and to Caen. Rail services were operated by steam locomotives until 1975, when hauling of trains was entrusted to the turbotrain. This lasted until 1996 when the line lost its main line status, Grandes Lignes, and became a regional railway line, TER. Trains were then hauled by X 4500 and no direct trains to Paris ran.

From 2003, rail services have been operated by X 73500 DMUs.

The track is being replaced and wooden sleepers replaced by concrete sleepers to permit trains to run at speeds of 100 km/h (62 mph) instead of the 40 to 80 km/h (25 to 50 mph) currently in force.