It is one of the busiest lines, especially during holidays.
In train stations, it is quite common to see the message “estimated delay of ….” on the departure display screens. Regular passengers are well aware of the problem of train delays. Most often arrive on time, hoping for a smooth departure, but find themselves waiting for long minutes, even hours before being able to board their train. The reasons for these delays are numerous: technical problems, weather conditions, security incidents, luggage forgotten upon arrival. In general, each announcement of a new delay is accompanied by sighs and desperate looks from passengers.
Moreover, some lines are more affected than others. According to a recent survey by World, devoted to SNCF’s methods for counting train delays, there is one that is particularly confronted with this problem. It is one of the busiest lines, with an average of 193 trains per day, according to SNCF Réseau figures. It is located in a part of France that is very touristy, especially in the summer…
This is the South-East region, connected by TGV from Paris to Lyon and then Marseille, which records nearly 30% delays, or 1 in 3 trains, according to the Transport Regulatory Authority (ART). These situations occur in particular during the “busy periods” And “the periods June-July, when the heat is high”, explains Gilles Dansart, rail transport expert, to our colleagues at World. Indeed, the management of passengers, more numerous during the holiday period, the heat, but also the storms in summer, would have a significant impact on the railway network, indicates the investigation. This would force the SNCF to slow down its trains on certain sections to avoid possible incidents.