Transportation In France Severely Disrupted Due To Strikes

The government's planned pension changes have prompted yet another statewide strike, which is expected to significantly disrupt transportation services over the next several days.

Travellers planning their journeys should be aware that flights and rail services have been curtailed and that delays are to be expected starting 7 and 8 of March.

There is no known end date for the new industrial action by workers across different industries in France, raising concerns that travel may be disrupted for many days.

The DGAC has requested that airlines adjust their timetables at Paris Charles de Gaulle by 20 percent on Tuesday and Wednesday. In addition, during the next 48 hours, services at the airports in Paris Orly, Beauvais, Bordeaux, Lille, Lyon, Nantes, Marseille, Montpellier, Nice, and Toulouse would be reduced by around 30%.

As a result of the strike, Eurostar and Thalys, two international high-speed train services, have reduced their schedules by around a third.

“It will involve disruption across multiple sectors, including national rail services and it will have an impact on the availability of some of our crew. In addition, we’ve now been informed of reduced opening hours on the high-speed line we use in Northern France on 7 March,” stated an Eurostar representative.

SNCF, the French train operator, issued a warning that all SNCF Voyageurs services will be "severely interrupted". On the first day of the strike, just around 20 percent of TGV and TER services are expected to operate.

SNCF Voyageurs suggests that customers who are able to do so should reschedule or cancel their planned travel on this days.

Over 1.4 million French employees are planning strikes this week to protest the government's proposal to increase the retirement age from 62 to 64.

 

source: businesstravelnewseurope.com