Relieved, the users were certainly this Friday in the teeming hall of the Montparnasse station in Paris. However, if everyone welcomed with relief the end of the SNCF controllers’ strike announced a few hours earlier, the good news does not put an end to the galleys of finding a ticket or an available train.
In front of platform number 1, a crowd gathers at the level of the security gates. Among the travelers who hasten, many are those who do not have a ticket. In this tumult, a handful of ambitious people manage to free ride and sneak to the train without the precious sesame.
“I don’t understand why they are picking on us”
Myriam is less successful and is reprimanded by an SNCF agent. The Parisian consultant tries her luck once more, without success. “The controllers let people pass without a ticket, I don’t understand: it’s the last TGV available for Bordeaux before Sunday”, grumbles the young woman of 28 years.
It is contradicted a few minutes later when a full train heading for the Gironde city comes to a standstill at the end of the platform. Myriam then heads with a determined step towards the ticket office and joins the list of unfortunates hoping for a miracle at the counter. To climb there, the battle promises to be tough.
Two days ago, Noémie was luckier. The camera assistant received the long-awaited email from the SNCF confirming her journey to Nantes (Loire-Atlantique). “I had no other solution, I was determined to come and push in the event of cancellation,” says the 23-year-old young woman.
She should be able calmly return to the capital following the New Year but confides his exasperation following the stress of the last few days. “I don’t understand why they are hounding us, there are other ways to win the case than pissing off the customers”, is indignant, however, the Parisian, who will then put her suitcases in a TER in direction of Saint-Jean-de-Monts (Vendée) to spend Christmas with his parents and his brother.
“I’d rather pay the fine than stay in Paris”
“They make us look like the bad guys in the story but we have no choice,” replied a railway worker who wished to remain anonymous. If we went on strike on a weekday in September, it wouldn’t have the same impact. The skipper supports his comrades, even if he does not participate in the movement. “A day of strike is equivalent to 80 euros lost, I can’t afford that”, he justifies.
Nathan will also not need to board a train without a ticket to find his family in Niort (Deux-Sèvres). The student in BTS transport and logistics had joined the capital to find his girlfriend and risked being stuck. “I was ready to cheat: I prefer to pay the fine rather than stay in Paris for the holidays, concedes the 18-year-old young man, relieved. I think we will be tight because people will go for it. »
VIDEO. SNCF strike: “The priority is no longer Christmas, it’s getting home”
Hall 1 of the station, full of people on this Christmas weekend eve, does not bode well. At the end of each platform, a security officer in an orange vest watches the passengers with a cautious eye, ready to intervene in the event of a jostle.
Pierre is determined to walk the route standing up. But unlike other users, there is no question of going illegal. He therefore quietly waits his turn in the queue at the ticket office. “I was supposed to join Niort today, because I have been on leave since noon, but there was no train available before Saturday, regrets the 22-year-old firefighter in training in Paris. If that’s not possible, I’ll take a hotel night. »
