DECRYPTION – As the regions approach, the government has decided to allocate several billion euros to the construction of new railway lines. Are they really necessary? Our analysis.
The “Massy bar”, an essential junction between east and west
The “Massy bar” as the railwaymen call it is the cheapest and most essential TGV line of the four currently under study. It is a section of some 30 kilometers south of Paris which would connect the high-speed networks of the southwest and the southeast and thus prevent “intersectoral” TGVs from being mixed up with freight trains and trains. RER line C transiliens.
This would make it possible to increase the number of TGVs connecting the regions without going through the intramural Paris stations but also to save up to 30 minutes of travel time on these same trains. Thanks to its stop at Pont de Rungis, there would finally be an easy interconnection with Orly airport, avoiding passengers from regions taking the plane to undergo the tedious change between Massy and Orly. In turn, this would improve traffic conditions on the RER C. But for the time being, 340 million euros are lacking for the realization of this project.
Read also :New SNCF price ceilings: advantage or powder in the eyes?
Toulouse-Bordeaux: high-speed line or new line?
The disaster that the eastern high-speed line represented for the fine service of the territories did not seem to have served as a lesson for local elected officials. Whether Metz or Nancy are now well served to Paris but with a starving offer to Germany, Alsace, the South and the North of France does not seem to move the elected officials of Occitania who, beyond reason, plead for a high speed line between Bordeaux and Toulouse. However, the National Federation of Transport User Associations (FNAUT), Voyages SNCF (which curiously was not consulted on this file), SNCF Réseau and the Report of the Council of Infrastructure Guidelines rather plead for a new line, which is not at very high speed, serving city center stations with trains running at 250 km / h and can be used by both passenger trains and freight trains.
This would allow the passage to save an hour of travel time between Bordeaux and Montpellier. It is not possible to achieve a significant increase in speed on the existing line between Bordeaux and Toulouse, given its route and the crossing of many urbanized sectors. This question of the alternative of modernizing the existing line was the subject of several studies and an expertise of the Federal Polytechnic of Lausanne in 2015 which confirmed the positions of SNCF Réseau for a new line. Ten billion euros are at stake.
Montpellier-Perpignan, finally in the process of being completed
It is the sea serpent of Occitania, these 150 kilometers which are missing to connect the French and Spanish TGV networks. The government has just decided to set aside one billion euros for a portion of the line between Montpellier and Béziers. With the “Massy Bar”, this is the most useful project. As the traffic on the existing route is totally saturated, the creation of this new mixed freight / TGV line would greatly improve the circulation of TER and intercity main line trains. The only pitfall, instead of serving Béziers-Center station, a new Béziers-Est station should be created. However, we know that a new station in the countryside means 30% fewer passengers. This end of the line would however make it possible to shorten the journey time by 15 minutes, putting Montpellier at 2h50 from Barcelona.
Read also :In Spain, SNCF offers a Ouigo with first class and bar
South, the saturated coastline
The coastline between Marseille and Nice is totally saturated. Even with a shoehorn, no more trains can be added. The creation of a new line in the hinterland is therefore essential in the long term. Rather than a high-speed line, local authorities seem to opt, unlike in Occitanie, for improvements to the existing line to Nice with an underground crossing and a station under Marseille. Subsequently, a new mixed line with trains traveling at 270 km / h allowing the circulation of TGV as well as TER or Intercity Express will link Marseille to Nice by sections. The government and communities have just decided to put nearly 4 billion euros for the first part with the priority objective of opening up the surroundings of the two cities. From start to finish, it’s a 14.5 billion euro project.
– .
