Jardin des Traverses Paris 18 occupies a stretch of the Petite Ceinture — the old circular railway that still rings the city — just minutes from the Adidas Arena and tram T3b. Open since September 2024, this urban farm, bar and outdoor venue is free to enter, Wednesday to Sunday.
Jardin des Traverses: the Petite Ceinture reinvented
Despite what you might read elsewhere, the Petite Ceinture is not a disused railway that has been turned into a greenway. The line still belongs to SNCF and remains part of the French rail network. An agreement between SNCF and the City of Paris has allowed certain sections to be opened to the public — while keeping open the possibility that trains could one day return.
The Petite Ceinture has a more complex history than it might seem. Circular passenger trains stopped running in 1934, but the line kept operating in various forms — freight, service trains, rolling stock transfers — right up to 2019. And since 1988, part of the western section has been used by the RER C. Far from being abandoned, the Petite Ceinture remains a living railway infrastructure. For authoritative information on its history and legal status, the ASPCRF (Association for the Preservation of the Petite Ceinture de Paris) has been the reference source for over thirty years.
In the 18th arrondissement, the section running alongside boulevard Ney — between Porte de Clignancourt and rue des Poissonniers — is one of the quietest corners of the neighbourhood. This is where the Jardin des Traverses collective, bringing together three associations — Vergers Urbains, Fédération Léo-Lagrange and Green Resistance — spent five years transforming 500 linear metres of track. Funded through the city’s Parisculteurs urban agriculture programme. Inaugurated on 27 September 2024, in the presence of Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo.
The result: 7,500 m² open freely to the public, Wednesday to Sunday, during standard Paris parks opening hours. The largest Parisculteurs site within Paris’s ring road.
What you’ll find on site
The original rails are still there. Around and between them: vegetable plots, raised beds, a greenhouse and wildflower meadows — with educational signs explaining which plants are edible, which support pollinators and which enrich the soil. Plants grow between the sleepers. The whole site sits in calm, sheltered from the boulevard traffic.
Along the walkway, the walls tell a different story: graffiti pieces, stencilled portraits, signed works — including a portrait of Bob Marley painted by Quentin Duroux in 2025. The street art here is not fixed: it changes with the seasons.
On the practical side: an associative bar, a kitchen cooking with produce from the garden itself, wooden tables and benches along the rails. A covered terrace sits under the Poissonniers bridge, open in season. 💡 The bar runs Wednesday to Sunday from midday — outside those hours, the garden remains open for walking but without service.
From May to October, Jardin des Traverses hosts outdoor concerts, gardening workshops, chef residencies and exhibitions. Most events are free. The full programme is available on the collective’s official site: jardindestraverses.org.
Street art, rails and urban wildlife
This stretch of the Petite Ceinture is also a remarkable nature corridor in the heart of the city — wild plants, birds, insects — an unexpected green lung steps from the street. The wooded embankments shelter over 20 bird species. The wildflower meadow attracts pollinators. Educational panels explain the natural cycles in plain language, designed to be readable by children and adults alike. It’s this dual identity — railway and nature — that gives Jardin des Traverses its character.
The neighbourhood around it is changing too. Campus Condorcet — a major university campus — opened its Porte de la Chapelle site in autumn 2025, directly opposite the Adidas Arena. The CiNey cultural centre opened on boulevard Ney. The Belliard swimming pool nearby opened at the end of 2025. Jardin des Traverses fits into a broader transformation of northern Paris 18.
📍 Getting there from Adidas Arena
Jardin des Traverses Paris 18 is a 12-minute walk from the Adidas Arena, heading west along boulevard Ney to rue des Poissonniers.
By tram: T3b, stop Diane Arbus – Porte des Poissonniers. The garden entrance is directly opposite the stop. The same T3b line serves the Adidas Arena directly (stop: Porte de la Chapelle). Two stops, under 5 minutes.
By metro: line 12, Porte de la Chapelle station, then tram or on foot.
Main entrance: corner of boulevard Ney and rue des Poissonniers, Paris 18. Free access, no booking required.
If you’re attending a concert or basketball game at the Adidas Arena, Jardin des Traverses is a solid option for the time before doors open — or a quiet spot to wind down afterwards. If you’re driving in, booking your parking spot in advance via Parclick is worth it: spaces near the arena fill up fast on event nights.
Practical information
The garden is freely accessible Wednesday to Sunday, during standard Paris parks opening hours. The bar and food service run from April to October. Outside that season, the site remains open for walking but without food or drink service.
Take tram T3b from Porte de la Chapelle stop to Diane Arbus – Porte des Poissonniers (two stops, about 4 minutes). The garden entrance is directly opposite the tram stop, at the corner of boulevard Ney and rue des Poissonniers. On foot from the Adidas Arena: approximately 12 minutes west along boulevard Ney.
Yes. From May to October, the garden hosts outdoor concerts, gardening workshops, chef residencies and art exhibitions. Most events are free. Check the programme at jardindestraverses.org.
following feedback from the ASPCRF,
the association that has worked for over thirty years to preserve the Petite Ceinture.
Thank you to them for their diligence.
Abandoned rails, plants growing between the sleepers, a hand-painted portrait watching over a wildflower meadow. This is Paris — and this corner of the 18th has been waiting to be found.
Planning your visit to the neighbourhood: full transport guide to Adidas Arena and our Porte de la Chapelle visitor guide.
