Paris Métro Line 14 introduced its first fully automated service in 1998. It opened on 15 October that year as a driverless line from Madeleine to Bibliothèque François Mitterrand.
The line was developed under the project name Météor, a French acronym for “rapid east–west metro.” It was designed as a modern high-capacity route through Paris, with longer stations, platform screen doors and automated train control from the beginning. Unlike older Paris Métro lines that were later converted, Line 14 was built for unattended operation from day one.
Line 14’s technology became an important reference point for metro automation. Its success helped encourage the RATP to automate existing routes, including Line 1, which began its transition in the late 2000s and later became fully automated. Line 4 was also subsequently converted.
A common mix-up is treating 1998 as the first automated metro operation anywhere. Driverless systems such as Lille’s VAL had already been operating. Line 14 was significant because it brought full automation to a large, high-capacity metro line in a national capital.