Antoine Bienvault with AFP / Photo credits: IAN LANGSDON / AFP 7:25 a.m., February 17, 2024

The strike by SNCF controllers continues on Saturday in the middle of the winter holidays and with only one in two TGVs in circulation, affecting a total of 150,000 travelers, according to the company. Europe 1 went to meet travelers at Montparnasse station in Paris.

At Montparnasse station, some lucky people got a ticket to leave the capital, despite the SNCF controllers' strike which continues. In the middle of the winter holidays and with only one in two TGVs in circulation, affecting a total of 150,000 travelers, according to the company, this weekend sees the first returns from zone C (Paris, Montpellier and Toulouse) but also departures from zone A (Lyon, Bordeaux, Dijon...). Train traffic has been “severely disrupted” since Thursday 8 p.m. and until Monday 8 a.m., warned the SNCF.

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“It’s quite annoying”

Sylvie is now used to strikes during vacation periods. For this day of departure for the southwest of France, she was therefore foresighted. “As I am a subscriber and I knew there was a strike, I made two reservations. The first was canceled and I got the second. You have to do it in advance,” slips -she.

Further on, in the station hall, Robin and his friend almost didn't leave. Two days ago, their TGV to Brittany was canceled. "We had to leave for Rennes, we had to take two TER trains. The first stopped at Le Mans, and then we took another towards Laval-Rennes. It must be half an hour longer, it's quite annoying because it’s always when there are the most people impacted,” he says.

To try to limit the damage, the SNCF deployed around fifty additional agents at the station to direct travelers, including Franck, red vest on his shoulders. “We had the first train to Hendaye at 7 a.m., a group of children who were supposed to leave but they didn't necessarily have a ticket as their train had been canceled. We do tailor-made work during these periods but everyone who has tickets can travel,” he informs. 

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No chaos at stations

Despite everything, the strike did not lead to chaos in the stations, with travelers taking the lead by giving up their trips, changing their tickets or adopting other modes of transport. 

The service is reduced by half on the TGV Inoui and Ouigo lines, as well as for the Intercités. The company announces “normal” traffic for classic Ouigo trains and “disrupted” for European connections, such as Eurostar. Traffic is better on local lines with “on average, 8 TER out of 10”. The customers concerned were all notified by email or SMS, assures the SNCF.

Priority was given to connections to the Alps, where trains were full in both directions, according to the company. On the other hand, certain lines are more affected, like Paris-Bordeaux, where two thirds of trains are canceled.