Earlier this month, SNCF alerted the French authorities to the risk of a massive deterioration in the national rail network by 2028 without an additional 1 billion euros annually in upkeep costs.
The state railway group claimed that if no extra resources were devoted to the maintenance of some 4,000 kilometres of track, there would be delays, traffic disruptions and “a collapse in service quality”, affecting 2,000 trains every day.
In an interview with RailFreight.com, DB Cargo France CEO Alexandre Gallo provided a rail freight industry take on the issue.
RailFreight.com: As a rail operator, is the (poor) state of the French rail network a major concern to you?
Alexandre Gallo (AG): More than ever! For several years now, we’ve been experiencing traffic problems due to the condition of the rails and the catenary systems.
Let me give you two examples: On a route between Forbach (in eastern France) and Bayonne (on the French-Spanish border), the ‘theoretical’ speed (of trains) is 120 kilometres per hour (kph), but the actual speed is only 64 kph. This slower speed is due to numerous points on the itineraries where trains have to slow down or where works are being carried out.
The state of the catenaries is causing premature wear of the contact strips, necessitating more frequent replacement, but also leading to recurrent pantograph problems.
RailFreight.com: No surprise then at SNCF’s assessment?
AG: Absolutely not! The report illustrates the backwardness of track maintenance over the last few decades. We’ve been saying this for years, and it’s even better when the authority responsible for this infrastructure says it outright!
RailFreight.com: Has there been any improvement in recent years?
AG: SNCF Réseau (the rail infrastructure manager) has made significant efforts to mitigate the disruption caused by works and has undertaken a series of urgent repairs. So I would say no on improvement, but no deterioration either. As for the long term, we may wonder about SNCF Réseau’s ability to adapt the network and its facilities to climate change.
RailFreight.com: How does the state of France’s rail network compare to that of other European countries?
AG: With an average age of 30 years, compared with 15 to 17 years for our neighbours, the French network is inevitably in poorer condition! Clearly, the fact that road traffic is not taxed in France, whereas it is in the majority of European countries, is denying the French rail industry the level of funding necessary to significantly improve the network. What’s more, the infrastructure manager needs multi-year visibility of the State’s commitment, which is not the case today.
RailFreight.com: With regard to rail infrastructure dedicated to freight traffic, do you think that real progress is being made in improving secondary/capillary and service lines following the increase in public spending, notably through the Ulysse Fret programme co-funded by the EU and France?
AG: This programme entails the investment of some 4.2 billion euros in rail freight over a period running well into the 2030s and beyond. Provision is made for France’s regional authorities and the State to commit to funding half of this amount, but for the moment, nothing is guaranteed.
Work has started on renovating some rail freight infrastructure, such as the marshalling yards at traffic hubs such as Miramas, near Marseille and Woippy, in proximity to Metz. For capillary lines, progress is still difficult to measure.
At a time when improvements are required urgently, it’s a concern that some of the development projects within the Ulysse Fret programme are only scheduled to be carried out around 2035 or even 2040.