Outgoing SNCF president Jean-Pierre Farandou has issued an urgent warning: France has just two months to secure an additional €1 billion a year in funding for the rail network, or risk “irreversible” German-style deterioration.
Farandou warns that without this budgetary reinforcement from 2028, up to 4,000 kilometres of the 17,000 km of the French rail network could suffer a drastic drop in service quality. This would affect thousands of trains per day and jeopardise the mobility of entire regions. The urgent deadline is to put this item on the budget agenda and plan the work.
According to an internal report leaked by RailTech, the state of the infrastructure is critical: the average age of the tracks is 30 years, with sections exceeding 70 or even 100 years, and 20% of the substations and catenaries are obsolete. The consequences are already felt through speed restrictions and cancellations, undermining public confidence in the train.
To cover the deficit, Farandou proposes redirecting European tax revenues (such as the carbon tax and aviation levies), a tax on heavy trucks and earmarking part of the motorway profits for rail.
The SNCF president, who will soon be relieved of his duties, appeals to citizens and politicians: “This is a common asset that we must preserve for future generations.”