SNCF Expects Normal Traffic on Last Day of Strike

PARIS, France — More than 90% of TGV trains are expected to operate normally on Sunday, May 11, marking the final day of a strike by train controllers, according to a spokesman from SNCF’s communications department.

“The Transilien (Paris suburban trains), regional TER trains, and Intercités have run normally, with 96% of TGV traffic operating as scheduled on Saturday. We anticipate similar conditions on Sunday,” the spokesman said.

The strike, which saw participation rates exceeding 60% among TGV controllers on Saturday, is predicted to see a slight decline in participation on Sunday, according to the Sud-Rail union. “On Saturday, we observed over 60% of controllers on strike, with peaks in the Southeast exceeding 66%. About 50% of TER controllers were involved,” said Fabien Villedieu from Sud-Rail.

Despite the strike, SNCF has assured that all travelers could proceed to their destinations as planned. The majority of trains are able to operate due to the deployment of volunteers within the company, who received special training for one day to replace striking controllers.

However, Sud-Rail asserts that this does not fully explain the low disturbances observed during the strike. “SNCF has sought to minimize the visibility of the strike by implementing a degraded transport plan using single TGV units of 500 people instead of the usual double trains during peak times, which require more controllers,” Villedieu explained.

Earlier in May, SNCF Voyageurs CEO Christophe Fanichet indicated that there had already been thousands of fewer bookings for the May 8 holiday weekend due to the anticipated strike. He stated that SNCF had conducted over 35 meetings aiming to maintain social dialogue, but he excluded any possibility of increasing salaries.

Sud-Rail plans to provide an update early next week regarding future actions. The CGT-Cheminots union has already scheduled further mobilizations: a strike on June 4 for drivers, followed by discussions on June 5 addressing pay for all rail workers, and another strike on June 11 specifically for controllers.