Latest news with #Sud-Rail
Local France
13-06-2025
- Business
- Local France
'Rail golden age' - More and more people take French trains (despite strike threats)
If you were to pay even the slightest attention to the news in France you'd probably reach the fairly rapid conclusion that SNCF and strikes go together like love and marriage. Or, for the more cynical out there, a horse and carriage. Earlier this month, French union Sud-Rail announced it had filed a summer-long strike notice beginning on Thursday, June 12th, at 7pm, which will last until Monday, September 1st, at 8am, allowing them to walk out with minimal notice at any time over that period. This latest threat followed strikes in May and December . And it's not like the last 12 months are an anomaly - France has in fact seen at least one rail strike every year since 1947 (and probably longer, but records only go back that far). Advertisement You might imagine, then, given all the inevitable disruption caused by repeated walkouts, that rail operator SNCF would find it difficult to attract customers to use its services. But you would be wrong. In February, SNCF confirmed it had carried nearly 130 million passengers in 2024, breaking a record of 122 million set the previous year. In fact, passenger numbers in 2024 were up four percent year on year, and were 11 percent higher than 2019 – a pre-pandemic year used as a reference for this decade to judge the current success of rail services. The group also reported a net profit of €1.6 billion last year – the fourth consecutive year it has ended up with a positive balance sheet. In 2022, it recorded record annual profits of €2.2billion. 'We are truly in the golden age of the train. We are building a virtuous circle for rail travel,' said SNCF Voyageurs' CEO Christophe Fanichet told journalists. 'This is a sustainable trend,' he said. Full trains One in three TGV trains runs full - according to Fanichet - while the low-cost Ouigo TGV services were full 60 percent of the time. French trains must be booked in advance, and on the high-speed TGV and Intercité services a booking automatically generates a seat reservation. The plus side of this is that you can be sure of a seat and won't be forced to spend the journey standing in the corridor outside the toilets, the down-side is that when trains are full they stop ticket sales - meaning that last-minute travel is often not possible. On the local TER services and suburban routes such as the greater Paris Transilien seat reservations are not taken, meaning that you might end up standing (but you can make a last-minute journey). Advertisement Overall SNCF reported that – with 364 trains available – it struggled to meet demand for TGV services in 2024. READ ALSO MAP: Where high-speed trains can take you in France It has ordered 115 new generation TGV M trains to augment its current fleet, but the first of those will not enter service until 2026. Integrating more Ouigo services, however, partly offset the problem, SNCF has said. 'Last year, for the summer, we added half a million seats, and we will continue to increase performance – that is, make trains run more,' Fanichet said. Last year, 38 Ouigo trains were operational - this number will rise to 50 by 2027. Ouigo trains run on the same routes as the TGV Inoui trains but are cheaper and offer a slightly more basic experience (no buffet car or onboard wifi, limitations on luggage). High speed versus low speed And it's not just the high-speed TGV services that are holding up the numbers. Local TER services across the country saw a 10 percent increase in passengers in 2024, Transilien travellers in the Ile-de-France region rose eight percent, and seven percent more people took an Intercité service last year than in 2023. Advertisement Night trains are part of the Intercité network, and these broke the one-million passenger barrier for the first time in 2024, as SNCF adds more routes and works on adding extra international links. France's local train TER network, which makes up around nine tenths of the total rail lines, is often described as the 'cinderella' service compared to the TGVs - underfunded, scarce, creaky, less reliable and more likely to see trains cancelled during a strike. However despite their problems TER services have seen a rapid increase in passenger numbers. In 2023, TER services welcomed 21 percent more passengers than in 2022, while it was reported that travellers on local rail services in Occitanie alone had jumped 40 percent in four years. Advertisement That's not to say that everything is perfect, there are still numerous rail issues in France. Regional president for Occitanie Carole Delga this week revealed plans to keep trains running on threatened lines in the region, for example, while one département is eagerly awaiting its first passenger service in more than 50 years. READ ALSO Could France's 'forgotten département' see the return of train services? But, if the numbers are anything to go by – can nearly 130 million people be wrong? – there's little sign of that the current popularity of rail travel is going to fade away soon. And the threat of strikes certainly don't seem to be putting off passengers.
Local France
12-06-2025
- Business
- Local France
What's happening in France in summer 2025
Rail strikes - the Sud-Rail union has filed a three-month strike notice, running from June 12th to September 8th. This doesn't mean three solid months of disruption, but it means that the union can call one-day or multi-day strikes at any time during this period, although they say they intend to give at least five days notice of planned actions. Find the latest updates here . Airline strikes - The busy summer holiday period is normally peak strike season for workers in the airline industry, whether that is airport staff, workers at individual airlines or air traffic controllers. At the time of writing no industrial action has been announced, but you can keep up with the latest in our strike section . Paris transport closures - every year the Paris public transport operators have a schedule of repairs and maintenance for the summer which involves line closures and disruption. The logic behind this is that public transport is a lot quieter in the summer as so many Parisians are away - this year there is a particularly extensive schedule of closures on the Metro, tram and RER lines - full details here . Elections? - last summer president Emmanuel Macron called snap parliamentary elections to try and break the deadlock in the Assemblée nationale. This did not work as planned, and in fact the deadlock is now worse. The Constitution states that the president must wait a year before calling fresh elections - Macron could, therefore, call elections from July, although it would be very unlikely that they would be held over the summer. Advertisement One thing we do know is that Macron will be giving the traditional presidential TV address to the nation on July 14th, in which he may or may not announce an election or policy changes. Debt plan - France is currently sitting under the 'sword of Damocles', according to prime minister François Bayrou, because of the country's spiralling deficit. Bayrou has issued several warnings about the deficit and its impact on the country, and has said that he will present a detailed plan of spending cuts "at the beginning of July". School holidays - French schoolkids get a decent chunk of holiday in the summer. The school year ends on Friday, July 4th (or July 5th for those schools that have Saturday morning classes), and restarts on Monday, September 1st. Public holidays - French adults get some holiday too, there are two public holidays over the summer period; the Fête nationale (aka Bastille Day) on Monday, July 14th and the Christian festival of Assumption on Friday, August 15th. Red letter days on the roads - with all that holiday travel, things get busy on the roads and the railways. Keep an eye on the French traffic forecaster Bison futé for the detailed traffic predictions but key travel weekends are the weekend of July 4th/5th, as the schools break up, the two above mentioned public holiday weekends and the final weekend of July, first of August - known as the chasé-croisé or crossover weekend as the July holidaymakers return and the August ones set out. Advertisement Property tax declaration - one for property-owners in France, if you've moved house in France or otherwise changed your status in the past year you may have complete the property tax declaration known as the déclaration d'occupation or déclaration des biens immobilers. It must be submitted by June 30th. Summer sales - the second of France's state-controlled sales periods is in the summer. This year the sales run from Wednesday, June 25th, until Tuesday, July 22nd. Festivals - summer is peak festival season in France with dozens of festivals all over the country each week - here's out pick of 29 of the best. Tour de France - this year won't have the excitement of the Paris Olympics, but when it comes to high-level sport there is still the Tour de France. This year, the famous cycle race returns to its traditional finish point on the Champs-Elyées, with an added loop through the historic Paris district on Montmartre .
Local France
06-06-2025
- Business
- Local France
French rail union files strike notice for entire summer
The French union Sud-Rail, which represents railway staff, announced on Wednesday that they had filed a strike notice beginning on Thursday, June 12th at 7pm, which will last until Monday, September 1st at 8am, Franceinfo reported . The union has said that they are demanding an immediate increase in their work bonus, to "take into account the constraints of the job", and they have denounced the working conditions of ticket inspectors, particularly related to scheduling. When could strikes take place? The strike notice does not mean a constant three-month strike, but it means that Sud-Rail can call a strike at short notice at any time within that period. "We'll decide at some point to call a strike," the head of Sud-Rail, Julien Troccaz, told RMC. "It's a certain amount of pressure, and we accept that; it's a power struggle that's established within the company," he added. Even with a strike notice in place, French rail workers must declare their intention to strike at least 48 hours in advance. A source from Sud-Rail told France Inter that they intended to give the public five days' notice before the start of strike days. Advertisement Previously, the union had lamented SNCF's (French national rail services) use of company volunteers to replace striking workers during strike action at the start of May. As a result, the strikes were not as disruptive as union officials had hoped. At the start of the month, the union told the French press that they were planning "less predictable actions", in order to avoid management relying on volunteer reserve workers. What about other unions? The French CGT union has called for ticket inspectors to walk out on June 11th, but so far there is no indication that other unions (or Sud-Rail) will join in this industrial action.
Local France
06-06-2025
- Local France
Rail strikes and taxi protests: What to expect in France next week
As the French summer holiday period draws near and families return home after the holiday weekend, unions representing both taxi drivers and rail workers have called for renewed strike action and mobilisation. Here is what to expect next week; Taxis After long-running protests by taxi drivers, which were temporarily scaled down in the capital city during negotiations with French government officials, the five main taxi federations have announced plans to relaunch their mobilisation against changes to medical transport fares from Monday, June 9th . Although exact details of their tactics have not yet been revealed, previous taxi protests have involved rolling blockades of city ring roads, as well as blockades at airports and transport hubs. Advertisement The federations reportedly decided to call for more protest action following a tense meeting with the Ministry of Healh. "We're being taken for fools by the government advisers. They have no intention of changing their methods or the rates they impose on us," Bernard Crébassa, the head of the National Federation of taxi drivers, told RMC . Now, taxi federations are calling on drivers to blockade Bercy, the French finance ministry, starting the morning of Wednesday, June 11th. Trains The union CGT has called on ticket inspectors to walk out on Wednesday, June 11th , but so far no other French rail unions have joined in calls for strike action on this day. So far, CGT's strikes have not been hugely disruptive, and they have primarily led to minor disruption on local and regional lines, rather than high-speed TGV and Intercités trains. The French rail union Sud-Rail also announced on Wednesday that they had filed a strike notice beginning on Thursday, June 12th at 7pm, which will last until Monday, September 1st at 8am. READ MORE: French rail union files strike notice for entire summer The strike notice does not mean a constant three-month strike, but it means that Sud-Rail can call a strike at short notice at any time within that period. Advertisement Even with a strike notice in place, French rail workers must declare their intention to strike at least 48 hours in advance. A source from Sud-Rail told France Inter that they intended to give the public five days' notice before the start of strike days. Rail workers are pushing for pay and bonus increases, as well as for better working conditions for conductors, many of whom complain that issues with scheduling have deteriorated their working conditions.
Local France
26-05-2025
- Local France
Closures, traffic, and strikes: What to expect for France's Ascension public holiday
This year, Thursday, May 29th, marks Ascension, offering both a day off work and a chance to 'faire le pont' (do the bridge) and use a single day of annual leave to take Friday off work, giving yourself a lovely four-day break. The festival, which Christians believe marks the day that Jesus ascended into heaven, is always 40 days after Easter Sunday, which is why its exact date varies from year to year. READ MORE: Why is Ascension Day a public holiday in France? Here is what to expect over the long weekend. Closures Thursday is a jour férié for French workers, meaning banks, schools, and public offices (préfectures, town halls, etc) will be closed. Smaller shops, like your local butcher or cheesemonger, might also close on Thursday, or remain open at reduced hours, as if it were a Sunday. Usually, ahead of a public holiday, smaller shops will post their schedule for the week in a note in the window. Keep an eye out for this in the days to come. Advertisement Most supermarkets remain open, but they may do so at reduced capacity. Museums and tourist sites may close on Thursday; be sure to check their opening hours beforehand. Big sites like the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower will remain open. You can see the list of other Paris museums that will remain open on Ascension on the Paris tourism website . As for Wednesday and Friday, these are normal working days, but many workers opt to leave early on Wednesday or take off the day on Friday to build a long weekend. Some shops may also remain closed on Friday. Travel disruption and strikes As many people use this as an opportunity to take a weekend trip. Expect larger crowds and longer lines at tourist sites during the weekend, as well as on the roads, and at airports and train stations. On top of that, there has been recent protest action by taxi drivers across the country, and on Monday, French farmers began another wave of protests. READ MORE: Latest: French farmer tractor protests restart, while taxi drivers target airports Both of these movements have involved road blockades and 'go-slow' campaigns, though taxi drivers have focused primarily on blocking access to airports (particularly in the Paris region) and train stations. Farmers have so far focused their protest action on motorways ( autoroutes ). The French rail union, Sud-Rail, which represents ticket inspectors, has threatened to potentially call for strike action during the Ascension long weekend. So far, no official strike notices have been filed, but a representative from the union told the French press that the strikes would be called "four days in advance." Keep an eye on The Local's strikes section for more updates on action by taxi drivers, farmers and rail workers. Traffic Aside from possible slowdowns due to protest action by taxi drivers and farmers, French traffic watchdog Bison Futé had also predicted heavy traffic for departures across the country on Wednesday and Thursday, as well as for returns on Sunday (particularly those driving from the north-west). The roads are expected to be clear on Friday and Saturday for both departures and returns. Weather Overall, French forecasters are predicting cloudy weather across much of France at the start of the week, and some showers mid-week, with the sun expected to come back out across much of the country on Friday. As for the weekend, forecasters have warned that cloudy and stormy weather (particularly in the south-east) may return on Saturday, with rain expected across most of France on Sunday. Advertisement Temperatures are expected to remain cool from Monday to Thursday, with warmer weather returning on Friday. In the south-west, temperatures are expected to reach 30C, Le Figaro reported. However, this may be short-lived with temperatures potentially dropping again with the rain and clouds over the weekend, according to reports by Météo France on Monday.
