SNCF

It's the SNCF's "Arlésienne" (a long-awaited, never-arriving event). The TGV M, which is due to run on the Paris-Marseille axis as well as Paris-Milan in order to compete with Trenitalia, doesn't seem ready to show its white nose on the horizon anytime soon. As a reminder, this "TGV of the future", built by Alstom, was supposed to be launched at the end of 2023, then for the...

"Optimum+ is finding its customers," assures Benjamin Huteau, Director of the South-East TGV Inoui Division, who this week presented an initial assessment of this new class, launched exclusively at the beginning of January on the Paris-Lyon route. An improved version of the Optimum class, which replaced Business 1ère, Optimum+ is offered on all 19 daily return services…

The London-to-Switzerland service project is on track. Eurostar, SNCF, and SBB, the Swiss railways, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to this effect, which foresees a feasibility study for a London-Geneva service by 2030. The three rail operators will thus be able to work on…

Regarded as one of the essential elements of its professional offering, the 11 Grand Voyageur Le Club lounges are receiving particular attention from SNCF Voyageurs. Following the renovation of the Gare de l'Est lounge in January, the company has just reopened access to the one at Paris-Lyon after a nine-week facelift…

Travellers departing from or arriving at Paris CDG airport have just under a year to wait before discovering the CDG Express, which is expected to make its grand debut on 28 March 2027. However, alongside this dedicated line directly linking the airport to Paris-Est station, they will also be able to travel in…

Business travellers who plan to travel by train on Wednesday, June 10th should expect significant disruptions on the railways. The four main railway unions have indeed filed a notice of national strike, feeling that their concerns are not being heard by the railway company's management after several weeks of discussion. Sud-Rail,...

In its latest report, "Travelling by Train: a Puzzle for Passengers," the Réseau Action Climat has highlighted the thirty or so air routes that carry over a million passengers per year between France and European cities, and their similar accessibility by train. The aim is to demonstrate the delay in...

After more than two months of work to extend its ground-floor surface area, SNCF has reopened its Grand Voyageur lounge, Le Club TGV Inoui, located in the frescoes gallery between halls 1 and 2 of Paris-Lyon station. This lounge now covers 630 m² after gaining 20…

While rumours a few weeks ago suggested that Transdev might win the contract, it was ultimately the SNCF that was chosen on 20 April by the elected officials of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Region to operate the Poitou-Charentes sector lines until 2037. The call for tenders foreseen as part of the opening to competition…

SNCF Voyages Italia will launch its low-cost TGV Ouigo services in Italy in September 2027, aiming to compete with the two existing rail operators, Trenitalia and Italo (*). SNCF Voyageurs will dedicate a budget of €800 million to this venture. This budget will be used for the acquisition from Alstom of 15 Avelia Horizon trainsets, more commonly known as…

Rail competition could intensify a little further in France. On Thursday, following heated debate, the Senate opened up access to SNCF Connect for rail companies other than SNCF, thanks to the vote on Article 9bis of the framework bill on the development and financing of transport in France. From 31...

The work carried out by SNCF Réseau is incessant, some of it with significant implications for TGV and TER (regional train) traffic. The latest announcement from SNCF is that they plan to replace no fewer than 9 points at the entrance to Marseille Saint-Charles station in May. This will have an impact on...

In early April, the French Rail Association (Afra) was campaigning for its member companies (Trenitalia, Renfe, Le Train, Transdev, Proxima/Velvet, etc.) to be sold on SNCF Connect in order to increase their visibility and sales. A bold request made in anticipation of the framework bill for the modernisation, development, and financing of transport, which will be debated from...

Railway companies belonging to the French Rail Association (Afra) are launching a renewed assault on SNCF in terms of distribution, demanding that SNCF Connect, the website of SNCF Voyageurs, should sell the offers of its members, such as Trenitalia, La Renfe or Transdev, but also future entrants like Velvet. To achieve this, they are campaigning for the submission of a…

SNCF Voyageurs has just renewed its partnership agreement with CFF, the Swiss railways, until 2032, to develop rail links between Switzerland, France and neighbouring European countries. The honeymoon between the two carriers has been going on for 45 years, particularly within TGV Lyria, which has...

Will it roll? Will it run? Uncertainty once again seems to be hanging over the start of operations for the first four TGV M trains, scheduled for 1 July. Rumours of yet another postponement have been circulating for several weeks. Last Friday, the specialist website Ville, Rail & Transport (VRT) went one step further, announcing that this so-called...

Updated on 6 March at 6pm. The Italian Rail Competition and Market Authority (AGCM) has just issued a favourable opinion for SNCF, giving the French carrier fair access to the high-speed market in Italy. After a great deal of prevarication, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI), the Italian rail network...

While Jean-Pierre Farandou, its Chairman for the last six years, has left for the Ministry of Labour, leaving Jean Castex in charge since November, the SNCF group has achieved stable sales in 2025 at €43 billion (-0.31TP3Q/2024) and, above all, a net profit of €1.8 billion. This is the fifth year in a row...

Despite having clocked up 13.8 million kilometres, the 377-seat TGV No. 4718, which entered service on 3 March 1995, is looking its best in the Landy technicentre in Saint-Denis. For 7 weeks, it has undergone a €2.5 million facelift as part of the SNCF's project to extend the service...

While Ouigo train tickets are now available from travel agencies in general and business agencies in particular, the SNCF's low-cost offer has seen its prices soar since 2017, according to the latest study by the Fédération nationale des Associations d'usagers des transports (Fnaut). A rise in fares that has already been...