Porte de Pantin station
Porte de Pantin (Parc de la Villette) () is a station of the Paris Métro, serving line 5. It is named after the nearby avenue de la Porte de Pantin, on the edge of Paris leading to the town of Pantin. It was in turn named after the nearby Porte de Pantin, one of the former gates of Paris. The station's name has been subtitled Parc de la Villette since the creation of the eponymous park in 1987 on the site of the former slaughterhouses of La Villette to the north of the station which closed in 1974.

History

The station opened on 12 October 1942 when the line was extended from Gare du Nord to Église de Pantin.

As part of the "Renouveau du métro" programme by the RATP, the station was renovated and modernised on 4 September 2003.

In September 2005, in partnership with the RATP and STIF, the Institut pour la ville en mouvement (IVM) installed relief tables at the station as well as at Porte de la Villette on line 7 and Basilique de Saint-Denis on line 13. They are relief maps of the neighbourhood surrounding the station. It is intended to help the blind and those who are visually imparied have tactile information at the exits of the stations on the surroundings as well as nearby cultural sites.

In 2024, it will be served by line 3 of the T Zen network, a bus rapid transit system, serving as its western terminus. It was originally slated to open in 2018, then postponed to the end of 2022, then again to 2024.

In 2019, the station was used by 5,615,256 passengers, making it the 69th busiest of the Métro network out of 302 stations.

In 2020, the station was used by 2,336,476 passengers amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, making it the 97th busiest of the Métro network out of 305 stations.

In 2021, the station was used by 3,374,733 passengers, making it the 89th busiest of the Métro network out of 305 stations.

Passenger services

Access 
The station has four accesses:

 Access 1: avenue Jean Jaurès Parc de la Villette (with a lift)
 Access 2: sente des Dorées (with an ascending escalator)
 Access 3: rue Adolphe Mille
 Access 4: rue Eugène Jumin

Station layout

Platforms

The station has three tracks and two platforms, with the centre track not being used in revenue service. Along with Porte de Bagnolet on line 3, Porte d'Italie on line 7, and Porte Dorée on line 8, it is one of the four stations on the network built at the former gates of Paris without having originally served as its terminus, although it has a platform configuration with three tracks with the centre track leading to a siding. This enables it to serve as an intermediate terminus for trains on short-working trips to turn back towards Place d'Italie.

After the opening of the Cité de la Musique in 1995, the platforms were renovated with a theme of music. The elliptical vault was painted white, while the walls were covered with white tiles with five grey horizontal lines of tiles, serving as the music staff. It was decorated with red, blue, green, orange, and yellow tiles forming musical notes, mimicking a music score.

The name of the station is written in faience on the abutments of the station and with the Parisine font on enamelled plates on the island platform.

Other connections
The station is also served by tramway 3b since 15 December 2012 along with lines 75 and 151 of the RATP Bus Network, and at night, by lines N13, N41, and N45 of the Noctilien network.

Nearby 

 Cité de la Musique
 Conservatoire de Paris
 Église Sainte-Claire de Paris
 Fontaine aux Lions de Nubie
 Grande halle de la Villette
 Le Trabendo
 Le Zénith
 Parc de la Villette
 Porte de Pantin, one of the former gates of Paris

Gallery

References

Roland, Gérard (2003). Stations de métro. D'Abbesses à Wagram. Éditions Bonneton.

Paris Métro stations in the 19th arrondissement of Paris
Railway stations in France opened in 1942