Faced with repeated delays and the age of the Corail trains running on the Paris-Clermont-Ferrand and Paris-Limoges-Toulouse lines, the French government has decided to invest €800m in an order for 28 trains, called "Oxygène", from the manufacturer CAF, based in Bagnères-de-Bigorre (Hautes-Pyrénées). Scheduled for delivery in 2026, the trains have been delayed by one year due to problems with braking and the traction motor during the ongoing tests in the Czech Republic. As with the Alstom's TGV M. A new series of tests will have to validate the train's safety features before it is fitted with its interior fittings in France. Passengers will have to be patient for a while longer, as commercial service of the trains is scheduled to begin in the course of 1 January.er quarter 2027.
More comfortable trains with greater capacity
The trains will travel at speeds of up to 200 km/h and carry 420 passengers - 20 more than today - with 317 seats in second class and 103 in first class. Above all, SNCF promises a leap forward in on-board comfort compared with the Corail, with a silent train and an ergonomic seat equipped with a footrest, reading light, tablet and USB socket. Not to mention Wi-Fi in both classes of travel. In addition to screens displaying passenger information, the trains will also offer a catering area and ten spaces for bicycles.
However, to ensure optimum rail service, infrastructure work on the tracks will be financed by the State and SNCF Réseaux, to the tune of one billion euros on the Paris-Clermont line and two billion on the Paris-Limoges-Toulouse route. Finally, investment is planned to adapt maintenance workshops to the future Oxygène trains at Paris-Austerlitz, Clermont-Ferrand and Brive-la-Gaillarde. A second order from CAF could be placed this year to equip the Bordeaux-Marseille line one day.
