{"id":306568,"date":"2025-10-24T18:12:32","date_gmt":"2025-10-24T08:12:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.railfreight.com\/?p=66862"},"modified":"2025-10-24T18:12:32","modified_gmt":"2025-10-24T08:12:32","slug":"sncf-reseau-chief-hails-dynamism-of-french-combined-transport-sector","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=306568","title":{"rendered":"SNCF R\u00e9seau chief hails \u2018dynamism\u2019 of French combined transport sector"},"content":{"rendered":"

The head of France\u2019s infrastructure manager, SNCF R\u00e9seau, has hailed the \u201cdynamism\u201d of the country\u2019s rail freight sector and in particular, the combined transport segment, with investments and the launch of new services at record levels. Speaking at the recent annual assembly of trade body, the GNTC, Matthieu Chabanel began by highlighting two positive developments on the investment front.<\/strong>
\n<\/span>The first is a proposal to increase funding for the modernisation and renewal of the (French) rail network \u2013 on which the majority of freight trains run – from 3 billion euros to 4.5 billion euros per year. \u201cWe don\u2019t know at this stage exactly how the 4.5 billion euros per year will be financed but we are gearing up for this level of investment as the contracts for work on the network we signed in September demonstrate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The second is a 4 billion-euro rail freight expansion project co-financed by the French State and the EU, named Ulysse Fret. Running until the next decade, it encompasses service lanes, marshalling facilities, capillary lines, digital technology, gauges, capacity and intermodal terminals. However, not everything has been settled yet with regard to funding, with some uncertainty over the financial input from regional authorities at a time of budgetary constraints, Chabanel noted.<\/p>\n

8-12 new traffic flows, improvements in train paths<\/h2>\n

\u201cThis year we will have seen the launch of between eight and 12 new traffic flows \u2013 almost one per month \u2013 a \u2018historic\u2019 performance for (French) combined transport. What stands out is that more than half of these new traffic flows are operating from either a new terminal or one that has undergone expansion\u201d, Chabanel stated.<\/p>\n

Maintaining such momentum and allocating satisfactory train paths for these new traffic flows, is crucial, he underlined. The initial results for the 2026 allocation show a significant improvement on the current year, especially in terms of the adequacy rate \u2013 train paths obtained which more or less match the requests from freight train operators \u2013 which have reached a record level.<\/p>\n