SNCF Voyageurs had a rather “positive” summer, helped by the Olympic Games, which boosted attendance on its trains in August after a less good July than in 2023.
“It has been a positive but atypical summer,” said Christophe Fanichet, director general of SNCF Voyageurs, describing the diametrically opposed months of July and August experienced by his railway company.
In July, attendance fell compared to 2023 due to several phenomena: the absence of a July 14th long weekend (which this year fell on a Sunday), gloomy weather, an unstable political climate and a sabotage of high-speed lines on Friday, July 26, on the eve of the most important crossover weekend of the summer for the company.
SNCF Voyageurs, which was supposed to transport 800,000 people that weekend, was able to transport 700,000 and re-established connections faster than expected. An “admirable” performance, praised the president of the National Federation of Transport Users’ Associations (Fnaut), François Delétraz.
SNCF Voyageurs was thus able to count on an excellent month of August to make up for a gloomy July and finally record a slightly better summer than in 2023.
The success of the Alps and the night train
The company transported 24 million people by TGV and Intercités (+1%) and attendance increased by 4% during the Olympic Games period (26 July to 11 August).
Some destinations took full advantage of the Olympic effect, such as Lille, home of the basketball and handball events, which welcomed 67% more travellers.
As for the most popular destinations, international connections were once again very successful with six million passengers transported, as in 2023. Travellers also preferred the Mediterranean and the Atlantic coast. The Alps boosted growth thanks to a 15% increase in attendance.
The night train was also a great success with 240,000 customers (not including international ones), more than 10% more than in 2023 but with an additional line, between Paris and Aurillac.
The night train between Paris and Berlin has been suspended since 12 August and will not reopen until 26 October due to major railway infrastructure works, highlighting the difficulties in operating this mode of transport.
This summer, SNCF Voyageurs offered 450,000 additional tickets compared to 2023 by deploying all of its nearly 800 TGV and Intercités trains, with an occupancy rate comparable to last summer (84%).
Rise of the TER
“The appetite for trains” is also a concern for the TER, stressed Christophe Fanichet, as frequency has increased by 10% year-on-year.
The latter allowed more than 230,000 young people aged between 16 and 27 to borrow unlimited TER and Intercités lines this summer in exchange for a 49 euro monthly subscription.
If the government was hoping to sell 700,000, Christophe Fanichet preferred to insist that three times as many were sold than in 2021, when the SNCF offered a pass of similar dimensions.
More than 2.4 million journeys have been made using this system, a figure that should be put into perspective taking into account the 1.3 million journeys made each day by the TER.
He hopes that the experience will be repeated next year “and even that it will be extended to the whole year and that it will not only be aimed at young people, but also at older people and families.”
Source: BFM TV
