"We are living in a unique moment": the train has never been so successful in France, we explain why
Decryption A new golden age of rail... Trains are returning to prosperity, thanks to increasing traffic, driven by a desire for low-carbon travel and opening up to competition.
By Claude Soula
Bordeaux Saint-Jean station. In 2028, the new French private company Velvet will launch its first high-speed line serving Paris, before competing with SNCF throughout the western region. LAURENT GRANDGUILLOT/REA
"A new golden age!" The expression is strong, but it is currently coming back into the conversation of all train professionals. "Golden age," say in chorus Jean-Pierre Farandou, the president of the SNCF (who is awaiting the appointment in the autumn of his successor – a priori the former Prime Minister and current CEO of the RATP, Jean Castex), Christophe Fanichet, CEO of SNCF Voyageurs, or Carole Desnost, director of innovation at SNCF, and, beyond that, its competitors like Rachel Picard, who created the company Velvet. "Golden age," like at the beginning of the 20th century, when the railway symbolized modernity. And it's quite a surprise for these railway workers who lived through difficult years, before this unexpected rebound.
The turn to prosperity has been made in the last five years, with the turmoil that followed Covid: "In the 2010s, our TGV trains were 60% full, which made them difficult to make profitable. We are now at 80% on average, with a third of the trains being full...
Article reserved for subscribers.
Log inSummer offer: €1/month for 6 months
Le Nouvel Observateur
