LGV Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur LGV Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur The LGV Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, also referred to as the LGV PACA and LGV Côte d'Azur, is a French high-speed rail project intended to extend the LGV Méditerranée towards the Côte d'Azur. The project is not currently funded and construction would begin around 2020 at the earliest. Three principal route options were considered, mainly concerning the alignment between Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, Toulon and Draguignan. Additional connections between the mediterranean coast between Barcelona, Montpellier, Marseille, Nice and Genoa and the southern cross route towards Toulouse and Bordeaux would be affected; the new line would link Marseille to Genoa in 3:15,
Alpes-de-Haute-Provence of Basses-Alpes was renamed Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. Here is an unflattering excerpt from an article called "Basse Alpes" from the Atlas Larousse published at the beginning of the 20th century: ""Scattered whitish rocks stand out like bones, a thin topsoil where bushes languish, some mountain flowers and stunted trees ... these mountains form almost everywhere a dreadful desert which will not have more inhabitants: this is the Sahara without the sun of Africa, with the snows of Siberia."" (P. Joanne). ""On these steep slopes deforestation and flooding have resulted in a lack of fertile soil and agriculture has been the most miserable.