Fewer trains in Île-de-France during the holidays

“The legacy of the Olympics” will not last long, as the SNCF will cut trains and commuters are not happy

After the Olympics, the rail company promised a return to 100% operation by the end of the year in Île-de-France. Unsurprisingly, it does not consider the All Saints’ holiday as the end of the year and will modify its service on a few lines during the holiday period. The affected lines are the RER C and D, and the TER J and L. While the RER C will not be much impacted, the D line and especially the J and L lines will see 60 of their trains being canceled.

Arnaud Bertrand, president of the association Plus de Trains, expressed his dissatisfaction in the pages of Le Parisien. He believes that a significant number of commuters will face “gaps of half an hour between two trains, at a time of year when there are still many people”.

The SNCF justifies itself

Transilien SNCF Voyageurs justifies the train cuts by the lack of drivers. Particularly because, according to them, their leave had to be postponed in order to be present during the Olympic Games. However, these explanations do not satisfy Arnaud Bertrand. He argues that there were contractual commitments between the SNCF and Île-de-France Mobilités, and that the SNCF is not respecting them.

Transilien claims to have done everything possible to ensure good service quality: “at the end of September, we exceeded our annual recruitment target of 900 people for 2024. At that same date, we had recruited more than 400 drivers.”

In December, the SNCF will implement its new “annual service,” determining the schedules and frequencies applicable for the following year. This change will help organize trips for the next twelve months.

Also read: Alstom sells 12 TGV to Proxima, future competitor of the SNCF