Currently, only one SNCF competitor operates trains on the French network. This is the Italian Trenitalia on the Paris-Lyon-Milan axis. However, the opening to competition is effective for regional trains and for main lines from 2020.
an unpleasant situation to Bernard Roman, president of the Transport Regulatory Authority (ART). “Openness was a reality in some countries 30 years ago, in the 1990s. […] We are one of the last to open. We are quite behind, ”she laments.
This problem has not escaped the government. “For some newcomers, entry costs, including the purchase of rolling stock, sometimes remain a barrier to launching new services. I hope we can continue to work together and identify solutions to increase the total number of trains in circulation to the benefit of all,” said Clément Beaune, Minister Delegate for Transport at the French Railway Association (AFRA) conference.
In fact, the Minister points out one of the main obstacles for the development of competitive offers of those of the SNCF. Namely, the exorbitant cost of rolling stock, but also the acquisition of railway tracks, security and signaling systems, payment of tolls (which the operator pays to SNCF Réseau to be able to use the tracks).
sticks in the wheels
Example with LeTrain, an alternative operator trying to launch a high-speed regional offer. This operator thus intends to acquire second-hand trains from SNCF. “We are negotiating but things are not going fast, in any case much slower than we thought. Frankly, we deeply regret it”, explained its director Alain Gétraud.
Specifically, the manager believes that his interlocutor does not provide all the data to “identify the refurbished rolling stock, block the traceability of the maintenance of the trains in question”, without forgetting the complexity “of the execution of the contract”.
“It’s hard for us to swallow, especially when we hear the calls by Jean-Pierre Farandou (CEO of the SNCF, editor’s note) for the planet and the use of the train. We have to be logical, we have to go all the way so that we can generate low-carbon mobility with equipment that is no longer in use. As a result, we end up having doubts and we risk resorting to new, more expensive and more carbon-intensive equipment, because this delay makes us take too many risks”, he continues.
However, the benefit of competition is obvious to all players and observers. Even for the SNCF. It allows to increase the participation of the train in the movements of the French. And lower prices.
Undisputed benefits
According to a Trainline study, all operators experienced an increase in ticket sales between the end of December and the end of August: +18% for TGV, +57% for OUIGO and above all +176% for Trenitalia.
Trainline thus notes a total average increase of 58% on the Paris-Lyon line, “which shows that everyone is a winner in a competitive market”.
On the price sidethe ticket purchase platform indicates that the average price of a Paris-Lyon route, all combined trains (TGV, OUIGO, Frecciarossa/Trenitalia) has gone from an average of 45 euros to 42 euros since the opening to competition, a decrease of about 7%.
But if the SNCF easily recognizes that the competition makes the cake bigger, it also defends tooth and nail its pre-square which would have the effect of dissuading certain players from starting.
Source: BFM TV
