Since the beginning of this week in the south of Haute-Garonne, it is the SNCF users who have been on strike!

“We are not an association, we are not a collective; Just users who met on the platform, who discussed, who all encountered the same problem,” explains Pierre. This is the advantage of train delays: it leaves time to discuss…

These users have agreed to refuse to present their ticket: instead, they present a flyer to the controllers, “with the greatest respect for these assertive personnel”. “Be careful not to forget your ticket” warns the leaflet. “Otherwise you are at fault”.

“Our objective is to convey our dissatisfaction to the management of the SNCF – rather than attacking the railwaymen who can’t do much about it” continues Pierre. “These malfunctions have consequences that can be heavy on the lives of users: temporary workers have lost their jobs, students, high school students or employees who arrive late at work – when they arrive -, some have to improvise carpooling at the last moment… We all remain attached attached to the public service but the contemptuous and unprofessional attitude of the SNCF must change”.

” Loss of trustworthy “

In the crosshairs of users: the lack of information, the delays or cancellations of trains and more generally an “unbearable situation for more than a year” and which “continues to deteriorate sharply since the beginning of January. This TER line is so dysfunctional that we no longer have any confidence in this mode of transport”.

“When there are incidents, works, strikes (like this Thursday)…, we can understand and we respect” explains Pierre. “What is unbearable are the unexpected deletions and delays every week. When we are told two days before that there is a shortage of equipment or the absence of staff, this is not acceptable: it shows that the SNCF is not anticipating anything. It too often leaves us at the quay completely helpless, without an alternative solution, to return home at very late hours or to be unable to get to work on time”.

Worse still, what these striking users call “ghost trains”. “Example with the 8:05 a.m. train in Cazères: it disappeared from radar without it appearing anywhere. It’s truly incredible, it’s time for the management of the SNCF to react, to respect the travelers and to listen to us”.

Awareness of SNCF difficulties

The regional management of the SNCF does not deny the problems and recognizes that “the Toulouse-Tarbes line has encountered several incidents”, in particular related to the weather (frost on the catenaries), incidents on the network (example of the theft of 400 meters of cable in Montréjeau at the start of the week), and more recently staff absences due to the Covid. “We are fully aware of the problems observed and all our teams are mobilized to rectify the situation and improve quality on this line” indicates the management. It is within this framework that a follow-up has been put in place and that we are committed to improving our communication with users – in particular through the real-time updating of all our information tools (traffic information, display at the station, twitter account).

Feedback

Meeting with users who have experienced journeys rich in memories!

Accustomed to the line, Chloe does not hide his dismay when it comes to returning to Saint-Gaudens: “Between the works, the book, the technical incidents (plus the cases that are not even explained) I never know when I will arrive. Or even if I will be able to leave, because it happens that trains are canceled at the last moment”.

She keeps a “moved” memory of her trip on January 15: the train scheduled for the end of the morning was canceled by more than two hours. “We were not told of the two-hour delay, but quarter of an hour by quarter of an hour” (from giving on the catenaries). “I had the impression that the SNCF was doing everything to keep us on the platform. Finally the late morning train was canceled and ”merged” with the early afternoon train”.

The departure from Toulouse was scheduled for 11:37 a.m., the train started at almost 2 p.m. Arrival in Saint-Gaudens: “It was past 3 p.m., I was starving”. His traveling neighbors who were going to Bayonne probably remember it: they arrived on the Basque coast around 6:30 p.m. it consoles, as much as the reimbursement of the transport ticket; “The SNCF reimbursed me up to 50%… because the train was ”only” two hours late”.

“Two and a half hours late”

“The worst I’ve experienced is a Toulouse-Cazères in 3h23 – and yet I’ve known other galleys” Annie still remembers, three months after her misadventure. In October, the line was still under construction, regularly causing inconvenience for users. Two and a half hours longer than usual, the train and its passengers were blocked at Muret with constant “contradictory information”: we are leaving/we are not leaving! We use buses / finally we get back on the train! Everyone was very angry… But that didn’t change anything”.

“By car, it’s not faster, but I’m sure not to stay in the station”

Also accustomed to the line and subscribed to “Infotrafic”, Corinne kept the message of December 30, indicating that from “Sunday January 2 and throughout the following week, the liO trains will run normally”. She prefers to laugh: “At the time, I thought it was so exceptional, that they reported it. But after reflection, a one-week forecast seemed presumptuous to me. Before, we only talked about ”trains arriving late”; today, on this line, we mainly talk about trains that arrive on time”.
I gave up, now I’m taking the car: it’s not faster, but I’m sure I won’t stay in the station”.