LTravelers are advised to postpone their trip. Train traffic will be “very severely disrupted” Tuesday, January 31, for the second day of mobilization against the pension reform, in particular for TER and Transilien regional trains, and will be “severely disrupted” for TGVs, announced the Company. National Railways of France (SNCF).
The railway company plans two out of five TGVs on the northern axis, one out of two in the east, one out of four on the Atlantic arc, one out of two on the south-east and two out of five for the Ouigos. For regional trains, it provides for two out of ten TER on average, and Intercity traffic will also be “very severely disrupted”: no train will run, with the exception of a round trip on the Paris-Clermont-Ferrand links. , Paris-Limoges-Toulouse and Bordeaux-Marseille. Night trains will be completely interrupted on the nights of Monday to Tuesday and Tuesday to Wednesday 1er february.
In Île-de-France, one train in three on lines A, B, H and U, as well as one train in four on line K, and one train in ten for lines C and D (partly closed) , E, J, L, N, P and R, according to a statement. Tram lines 4, 11 and 13 will operate normally.
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On the international side, the trains will experience various fates: Eurostar and Thalys traffic will operate almost normally, but TGV traffic will be “severely disrupted” between France and Switzerland (Lyria).
“The forecasts are broadly similar” to those of last Thursday, which marked the first day of mobilization, SNCF told AFP. In its press release, SNCF Voyageurs recommends that travelers who can “cancel or postpone their trips” and “favor teleworking”. Users are invited to “check the circulation of trains” Monday from 5 p.m., on the sites and applications of the SNCF.
Metro, bus, RER… RATP forecasts
Traffic will also be “very disrupted” in the metros in Paris and the RERs, Tuesday January 31; and “slightly disrupted” for buses and trams, according to the RATP.
Traffic will be “normal” for automated lines 1 and 14, with however a “risk of saturation”, warns the RATP. Line 4 will operate with one in two trains at peak times and one in four trains at off-peak hours, according to the press release from the transport manager.
On the other hand, traffic will be completely interrupted on the 3Bis metro line. Line 2 will only operate from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. with one train out of two. Some metros will only run during peak hours (7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) at the rate of one train out of three on all lines 7 and 7bis, one train out of two for line 9 and one in four trains for line 12.
Lines 3, 5, 8, 11 and 13 will be partially open and “only during peak hours”, which means that some stations will be closed.
Line 6 will only run between the Nation and Denfert-Rochereau stations and only at extended peak times (6:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.) with one train per three. Line 10 will run exclusively in the morning and at the rate of one train out of three.
The circulation of surface networks, buses and trams, will be much less affected with an average of eight out of ten buses and trams that will run on the network.
The RER A and B (in the RATP zone) will run with difficulty with an average of one train out of two during peak hours.
Towards the cancellation of one in five flights at Orly and one in ten at Air France
At the same time, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) has asked airlines to preventively cancel one in five flights at Paris Orly airport. Indeed, “the DGAC has asked airlines to reduce their flight schedule by 20% for the day of Tuesday January 31, 2023 at Paris-Orly airport”, according to a press release. “Despite these preventive measures, disruptions and delays are nevertheless to be expected,” said Civil Aviation.
Air France will cancel one in ten short and medium-haul flights on Tuesday and long-haul routes will not be affected, the airline announced on Monday. Responding to “the request of the General Directorate of Civil Aviation (DGAC) made to all airlines to reduce their flight schedules to and from Paris Orly by 20%, Air France plans to ensure for this day the all of its long-haul flights” and “90% of its short and medium-haul flights”, the company told Agence France-Presse.
These figures are the same as on January 19, during the first day of the interprofessional strike against the pension reform. The strike notice “was relayed by several unions representing air traffic controllers”, explained the DGAC on Sunday, which, “in order to limit traffic disruption”, asked the companies to “reduce their flight program by 20% for Tuesday, January 31, 2023 at Paris-Orly airport”.
The other major airport in the Paris region, Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle, is not concerned, the DGAC having estimated that the staff available there was sufficient to be able to ensure the entire flight program. Both Air France and the DGAC have however warned that disruptions and delays remain possible.