SNCF strike: what loss of earnings for the railway company?

Aurélien Fleurot / Photo credit: STEPHANE MOUCHMOUCHE / HANS LUCAS / HANS LUCAS VIA AFP 7:08 a.m., February 15, 2024

Nightmare predicted on the rails this weekend. The controllers' strike begins this Thursday evening at 8 p.m. and lasts until Monday. The SNCF announces 70% of strikers and one in two TGV Ouigo or Intercités in circulation. A strike which promises to be very hard for users but also for SNCF accounts.

>> READ ALSO -

 SNCF strike: what are the exceptional reimbursement terms?

This will obviously depend on the number of trains in circulation. With half of the TGVs eliminated, the bill will inevitably be steep. "Several thousand euros on each train compared to the number of trains, the SNCF runs 700 TGVs per day, 350 trains which do not run. We are of the order of several million euros in shortfall, multiplied by the number of days", estimates Julien Joly, transport specialist at Wavestone. “We could reach tens of millions of euros in shortfall over the period.”

Compensation for travelers

But these are only TGVs, so the bill will inevitably be much heavier. Internally at the SNCF, the phrase circulating is "one day of strike, it costs a TGV train", or 25 to 30 million euros. Because we must also take into account the compensation provided. This time, it will be a 50% reduction on the next trip booked by all passengers impacted by the strike.

According to these financial results for the first half of 2023, SNCF quantified the shortfall due to the various days of strike against the pension reform at 400 million euros.