The decision was awaited with as much fear as impatience by the railway unions and by the SNCF. The first of four batches of regional express trains (TER) opened up to competition by the Hauts-de-France region, that of the “Amiens star” was awarded to SNCF, the incumbent operator, in competition with Transdev, a subsidiary of the Caisse des dépôts et consignations.
According to our information, which confirms that published by Mobilettrea specialized publication, the decision of the region, the transport organizing authority, was notified on Wednesday 1is March, at the SNCF. It concerns services around the star of Amiens, i.e. 17% of the TER offer in the region, for a period of nine years, from the end of 2024.
The allocation of this first batch by the Hauts-de-France region was particularly sensitive. The regions must indeed, in application of European rules, open their rail services to competition within ten years from the end of 2023. However, relations between the region and the SNCF had been very strained over the past two years. , due to numerous delays and train cancellations. The degradation of the quality of service, caused in particular by the lack of train drivers, had prompted the president of the region, Xavier Bertrand, to temporarily suspend the payment of the sums due to the SNCF for the operation of the lines.
“We pay half a billion euros a year for a service that is not rendered as it should be”had denounced Mr. Bertrand, in September 2022, to the Monde. The region was annoyed to see that the SNCF was making profits in Hauts-de-France, while, at the same time, the penalties due in compensation for delays were capped. Faced with the lack of drivers, SNCF had to temporarily reduce its supply at the end of 2022 and renewed its promise to recruit and train new agents in 2023.
Under pressure
The region highlights the interest of a negotiation with the SNCF under pressure of a call for competition even if, in the end, the public company won. “While the current operator has won the “star of Amiens” prize, the mechanism for opening up to competition has enabled the region to include in the specifications a certain number of binding provisions which will be imposed on SNCF. Passengers at the start of operation »reports a source close to the negotiations, within the region. “They had to accept what they refused when there was no competition”notes an elected official.
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