Roanne

Roanne is a city in Loire, Southeastern France.

Get in
Roanne is located about an hour from Digoin, Lyon and Saint-Étienne and about an hour and a half from Clermont-Ferrand.

By train
From:
 * Lyon-Part-Dieu (1 hr 5 min), Lyon-Perrache (1 hr 10 min), Clermont-Ferrand (1 hr 15 min), Saint-Étienne-Châteaucreux (1 hr 10 min), Tarare (35 min), by direct TER connections Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
 * Paris-Gare-de-Lyon via:
 * Le Creusot (by Région Express coaches ) + TGV (3 hr 15 min)
 * Moulins-sur-Allier (by Intercités ) (3 hr 45 min)
 * Lyon-Part-Dieu by TER + TGV (3 hr 30 min)
 * Vichy (via Intercités) (4 hr 10 min)

Get around
The STAR network (Société des Transports de l'Agglomération Roannaise) provides a very dense public transport service. The single ticket is sold for €1.35. The OuRA card can be loaded according to its uses, such as taking the train on the SNCF network.

An exchange centre in the Mulsant district, next to the station, brings together all urban and interurban transport and the bus providing service to the Creusot TGV station in 1 hour 30 minutes. The bus station is home to 9 regular lines serving the municipalities of Balbigny, Neulise, Saint-Martin-d'Estréaux, Ambierle, Renaison, La Gresle, Perreux, Saint-Alban-les-Eaux, Saint-Just-en-Chevalet, Saint-Germain-Laval, Boen, Charlieu, Vougy, Chauffailles, and Briennon.

Buy

 * Charles de Gaulle, Maréchal Foch, Jean Jaurès, Alsace Lorraine and Brison streets have shops of many national brands
 * Espace Saint-Louis, in the city centre, has a Carrefour Market supermarket and shopping mall

Drink
The local wine is called Roannaise. Red is fruity and light; rosé lighter still and tasty; white also available. Volume of production seems limited.