In 1994, the LGV Rhône-Alpes high-speed rail line brought TGV service to the airport, providing direct trains to Paris and Marseille.

The fan-shaped canopy of the Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry, designed by architect Santiago Calatrava, is the airport's most notable architectural feature.

He was a native of Lyon, and a laureate of the Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française, and died in World War II.

[4] The airport consists of passenger terminals 1 and 2 which are interconnected on the landside by a central building that itself has a foot-bridge to the nearby Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry high-speed railway station and the Rhônexpress terminus.

[5] It is also connected by a tunnel to a small satellite building containing the D gates, now mainly used by easyJet and Transavia France, while the other areas serve Star Alliance carriers and Emirates, among others.

This tramway replaced the former coach shuttle services (Satobus) that operated beforehand leaving the airport with no other public connections to the city centre.

The Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry station is also served by the LGV Rhône-Alpes high speed rail line.

Coach links connect the airport with the centre of other towns in the area including Grenoble (at least once an hour), Saint-Étienne and Chambéry.