The establishment of a summer “rail pass” reserved for young people cannot take place this year as President Emmanuel Macron had promised (AFP/Archives/Lionel BONAVENTURE)
Those under 27 will be able to take the TER and Intercités (but not the TGV) at will this summer for 49 euros per month: the “rail pass” was finally accepted by “all regions”, the minister said on Wednesday evening. delegate for Transport.
“The situation has just settled down now”, after a day “rich in discussions”, declared to AFP Patrice Vergriete, who had deplored in the morning on franceinfo that three regional presidents had not given their consent green to experimenting with this package for July and August.
According to the minister, these were Hervé Morin (Normandy), Laurent Wauquiez (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes) and Xavier Bertrand (Hauts-de-France).
The latter, contacted by AFP, denounced a “final staging” by the minister aimed at “pointing the finger at the regions” to hide an “amateur method”, assuring that there had never been any question of oppose the operation but ask for the resolution of “two injustices” on its scope and its financing.
Declaring himself “delighted” with this outcome, Mr. Vergriete thanked the President of Occitanie and Regions of France, Carole Delga, who “remobilized the regional presidents” on this issue, as well as the latter.
The minister indicated that he wanted to raise the call on Wednesday morning because “without this public awareness that it was happening today, we might not have succeeded.” Transport operators, in particular the SNCF, should have sufficient time to prepare the application of the system, he explained.
“Where would you go ?” asked Emmanuel Macron on X to the address of future beneficiaries, welcoming the news.
– Not yet Ile-de-France –
This experiment is, however, only a “first step”, the government having committed to ensuring that the system can also be applied in Ile-de-France from 2025, according to him.
The State will cover “80% of the total cost, the regions take 20%”, recalled Mr. Vergriete, while in a first version of the project, the distribution was established at 50-50. The cost for the government will be around 15 million euros, he previously specified.
Emmanuel Macron said in September that he was “in favor” of the establishment of a monthly pass open to all to travel anywhere in France thanks to regional trains and Intercity connections. The initiative is inspired by the existing package in Germany, at 49 euros per month.
The project involving the regions – which finance regional trains and decide on prices – had already been revised downwards, now reserving the rail pass for under 27s and for the summer season only.
For Xavier Bertrand, “two injustices” remain. Since Ile-de-France is not concerned, “young people from Hauts-de-France will be penalized” if they want to go there or cross it.
On the other hand, “it would still have been logical for the State to finance 100% to the extent that all the lines are managed by the region”, he told AFP.
Hervé Morin explains to AFP that he has given his “agreement in principle provided that the financing criteria take into account the fact that in Normandy 100% of Intercity trains have been the responsibility of Normandy since 2020, which is not not the case for other regions.”
“I simply hope that the rail pass does not cost me a fortune,” says Hervé Morin.
In the Grand Est, Thibaud Philipps, vice-president in charge of transport, highlights the subject of “distribution of revenue so that the regions do not end up paying for all of this offer”.
The Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region also confirmed on Wednesday that it had given its agreement.
“It is unthinkable that this system would be put in place without Ile-de-France,” declared Frédéric Aguilera, regional vice-president in charge of transport, conditioning his agreement to the renewal, in a year, to the integration of the capital region.
This is in fact the case of Ile-de-France which has notably caused discussions to stall in recent weeks, confirmed Mr. Vergriete, in a telephone interview from Brussels, on the sidelines of a meeting with his European counterparts.
The integration of the region and its “somewhat complex” Navigo package system proved impossible this year, he stressed.
A summer rail pass exclusively reserved for young people already existed in France in 2020 and 2021. It concerned those under 27 who, for 29 euros per month, could borrow any TER anywhere in France – except in Ile-de-France. France — but not the Intercités.
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© 2024 AFP
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