Here are the news for the SNCF inflation concerns!
Inflation: After a record summer, SNCF more cautious for the start of the new school year
The start of the new school year promises to be more uncertain for SNCF in a context of inflation and concerns for purchasing power.
After a "super summer" marked by record attendance, the start of the new school year is looking more uncertain for SNCF in a context of inflation and concerns for purchasing power, SNCF Voyageurs CEO Christophe Fanichet told AFP in an interview. "We've been there, but we haven't always been on time," admits Fanichet, who runs the railway company proper.
"This is the first summer where we have had such long periods of heat waves, and everywhere. (...) The trains were slowed down, the rolling stock was extremely stressed. ""This is a topic that we will find again at the start of the new school year," he remarks by the way. "We are going to make a feedback in September: the heat wave, we all understood well, must fit into the norms and standards of the box. "Regardless of the region, in the north as in the south. "It was hot on the tracks and on the trains, but the railway workers were there anyway," he wants to emphasize. "It's been hot for them too! »
SNCF inflation concerns
Fanichet also notes that "Covid was still a bit there" this summer, affecting "both travelers and our agents". If the number of serious incidents remained relatively limited, SNCF Voyageurs still went through a bad patch at the end of July, marked in particular by "galleys" on the RER B and D in Ile-de-France, the sinking of a Paris-Clermont and repeated mishaps at Thalys.
Two trains of the Franco-Belgian company broke down on July 19 and 24, before a train hit an animal on the 29th, causing a monster mess on the line. "A hardware failure like that of Thalys, must not happen again," judges the manager.
Still, it's very good news. The rebound that began in the spring has been confirmed, and the SNCF has transported 10% more passengers compared to the summer of 2019, already a record, before the health crisis. "We will have transported 23 million passengers on TGV and Intercity trains in July and August. With the international 28 million", rejoices Fanichet. "We got all the trains out and all the trains were very, very well filled. »
SNCF inflation concerns statements
The TER also saw a sharp increase in attendance, 15% above 2019. "There is a growing appetite for low-carbon mobility," explains the manager. "And we are also helped by the price of fuel. "With the start of the new school year approaching, Christophe Fanichet is being particularly cautious. Bookings remain encouraging for leisure activities, but "we don't know what to say yet for professionals," admits the boss of SNCF Voyageurs.
"The SNCF is a kind of thermometer of what is happening in France," he considers. However, "inflation is still there, there is the concern of the French for purchasing power, energy costs, we don't really know what will happen in terms of health ..." On the social side, "there will be local social movements here and there," he predicts. But no big national strike in sight, except for interprofessional days like the one on September 29th.
SNCF inflation concerns news
Big topic of the start of the new school year: the SNCF group wants to hire 5,000 employees, including 600 at Transilien alone (the trains of the Parisian suburbs). "We have a hard time recruiting, like all other professions," he sighs. "And besides, the subject is difficult: we recruit people who we have to train, which takes a lot of time. "Finally, a little concern about the supplies of equipment.
"The automotive industry has been shut down because it is in a tight flow for supplies. We don't, but our stocks are starting to fall," notes Fanichet. "I didn't stop the train today because there were missing parts. But the question is starting to arise," he warns. As for a possible increase in the price of TGV tickets to take into account inflation, "we will have to make a decision in the fall," he says
