2023-09-21 14:48:00
SNCF Voyageurs wants to extend the lifespan of 104 TGVs from two to ten years in particular in order to “respond to a demand from ever-increasing numbers of travelers choosing the train”, this SNCF group company responsible for passenger rail transport said on Thursday. This “Botox” project to “extend the lifespan” of 104 TGV trains will be added to “strengthen the TGV offer” to the order placed for 115 new new generation TGV Inoui trains (TGV M), increase in the number of TGV Ouigo trains (from 38 to 50 trains) and “the intensification of the use of rolling stock”, explained SNCF Voyageurs in a press release.
With “Botox”, the objective is to “extend the lifespan of these TGVs beyond forty years”, declared Christophe Fanichet, CEO of SNCF Voyageurs, during a press conference. These are “nearly a third of our TGVs which can be extended”, he added, while the TGV fleet currently has 363 trainsets.
Safety and comfort
The company is already renovating its trains at mid-life, but “from 2026, 104 TGV trainsets will see their lifespan extended from two to ten years (…) beyond what is classic” and, “obviously , this must be done with 100% security, but also comfort” for travelers, underlined Alain Krakovitch, director of TGV-Intercités.
These 104 trains “eligible for the Botox program will be assessed” and their renovation will last “until 2033”, he specified. Among these trains, around “a quarter are two-level and three-quarters are single-level, the oldest”, he detailed. “Only double-deck trainsets will be extended for up to ten years,” he noted. “The other trains will be extended from two to six years,” reported Vincent Lahillade, director of industrial operations.
A cost of “several hundred thousand euros”
The overall cost of this renovation program entrusted to the SNCF workshops should reach “several hundred million euros”. “There are still assessments to be carried out”, according to Alain Krakovitch. To renovate these trains, trainsets will be used as “stores” for spare parts and “very modern techniques, for example the 3D reproduction of parts” will be used, he noted. “We are in the process of creating a sort of material resource,” he summarized.
The duration of the extension of the life of the trains will depend on the results of the assessments, i.e. one to three years of studies depending on the trains. The renovation work might take between two weeks and six months. The first renovated trains will run in early 2026, with the program due to end in 2033.
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