Change of strategy for Le Train. Whereas the future railway company aspired to operate direct high-speed services between the major cities of the Atlantic facade, with Bordeaux-Nantes and Bordeaux-Rennes at the forefront, it has just announced that it wants to operate on the Paris-Nantes and Paris-Bordeaux. Two framework agreements have been signed in this regard with SNCF Réseau, the manager of the French railway infrastructure, in order to obtain the valuable slots tomorrow which will allow it to run between the capital and these two cities in the Grand Ouest.
" Le Train is now extending its direct high-speed lines between regional cities with two new links to Paris, on two routes where demand is high and supply insufficient "Alain Getraud, co-founder and CEO of Le Train, is delighted. In its press release, the Bordeaux-based start-up believes that " demand outstrips supply "on these two axes. " Trains are fully booked and passengers are struggling to find seats at times that suit them. "he stresses. To meet this demand, the operator's ambition is to offer around ten round trips a day from 2029.
Le Train has ordered ten trains from Talgo
Founded in 2020 in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, the Bordeaux-based start-up has already completed several stages in its development, notably ordering ten Avril S106 trainsets from the Spanish group Talgo, as well as the maintenance of this equipment for its operations in France. Financed in particular by Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, Crédit Agricole Charente-Périgord and the Nouvelle Aquitaine Region (through its Naco investment fund), the railway company has been able to launch the construction of these trainsets at the manufacturer's factory in Rivabellosa, in the heart of the Spanish Basque Country. However, the Train will have to pass the certification phase for these new trainsets, a lengthy process that Renfe has still not completed, and which Renfe despairs of ever seeing its trains leave the Gare de Lyon in Paris.
An initial plan to avoid Paris
Despite this announcement, Le Train has not forgotten its initial plan to offer around fifty possible journeys between 11 towns in the West of France, including Bordeaux-Rennes in 3? hours via Angers, Tours, Poitiers and Angoulême. And between Bordeaux and Nantes using the existing high-speed line between Tours and Bordeaux. However, the rail company is also looking at the conventional TER and TET (Trains d'équilibre du territoire) markets. As part of the process of opening up the regions to rail competition, Le Train has responded to the call for tenders to take over the operation of six lines in Poitou-Charentes: Poitiers-Angoulême, Angoulême-Bordeaux, Poitiers-La Rochelle, La Rochelle-Bordeaux, Angoulême-Saintes-Royan and Niort-Saintes-Royan. These routes carry 5 million passengers a year.
Three operators tomorrow between Paris, Bordeaux and Nantes?
After the arrival of Trenitalia on the Lyon and Marseille routes, the launch of Le Train on the Paris-Nantes and Paris-Bordeaux routes is not good news for SNCF, which is once again facing competition on its most lucrative routes. It's also a thorn in the side of Velvet, the company launched by Rachel Picard and Tim Jackson, which aims to operate on the same routes. However, Velvet still has a slight head start, with double-decker high-speed trains manufactured in France by Alstom, a certification process that should benefit from that currently under way for the SNCF's TGV M high-speed trains, as well as its own maintenance site near Bordeaux and the start of operations theoretically scheduled for 2028. That's one year before Le Train...
