SNCF takes up the TER 2030 challenge

FRANCE: Setting an ambitious target of quadrupling local passenger traffic, SNCF has brought stakeholders together to examine the future of its regional networks.

Rising fuel prices, worsening road congestion and growing environmental awareness are just some of the reasons why SNCF and its sponsoring regions believe that growth in regional passenger traffic is certain to continue. In 2007 SNCF Proximités, responsible for TER regional services, the Transilien network serving Paris and Corail Intercités, reported a turnover of €5·9bn, up by 4% on the year before. And this trend continued in the first quarter of 2008, when turnover of €1·55bn was up by 5% compared to the same period in 2007.

The French national operator is taking the bull by the horns. It wants to stop 'running to catch up with demand' and 'take the initiative' by anticipating future public transport needs, according to SNCF President Guillaume Pepy. Nine months ago, as the government unveiled the policies produced by its Grenelle de l'environnement working group to foster sustainable development (RG 12.07 p743), SNCF approached other stakeholders with the aim of sketching out what the 'everyday' transport market might look like in 20 years' time.

'The services we will offer in 2030 will not be a simple extrapolation of the current timetable', stresses Jean-Pierre Farandou, Director of SNCF Proximités. In particular, he notes, the domestic rail passenger market is likely to have been opened up to competition in line with proposals outlined by the European Commission.

Multimodal approach

SNCF and its partners have formed a working group to consider the future of regional services and stations, christened 'TER x 4' to reflect an objective of quadrupling traffic by 2030. The group includes members drawn from the road and rail sectors to ensure a multi-modal approach, as well as academic institutions, the regions and infrastructure manager RFF. Several key themes have already emerged:

Infrastructure should be configured to ensure ease of movement at every interface, be it between train and platform, bus and station or the station and the town it serves. The station platform itself should receive more attention than it has done in the past, in terms of length, height, width and access. Platform furniture must offer the facilities expected by passengers whilst facilitating ease of circulation, a key factor in service quality and train punctuality.

As a first step, SNCF and RFF envisage standardising platform heights at 550 mm above rail in the regions and at 920 mm on the Paris commuter network. Operating constraints have also been considered, with bottlenecks to be identified and removed. SNCF has proposed reviewing track layouts at stations to maximise operational efficiency, but the question of access charges to fund any necessary changes has not been considered.

The station concept needs to be defined with greater precision, bearing in mind the likely requirements for passengers using different modes. In future, SNCF suggests, a station in a built-up area should provide good interchange facilities for bus and light rail, taxis and car-sharing services rather than private cars. The opposite would apply in more rural areas, where the provision of park and ride would be a priority.

In general, easy interchange should be provided in physical terms (paths, signage, station layouts), and ticketing should also be integrated to ensure a seamless journey; paperless ticketing is one possibility. Track and buildings no longer required for railway use could be removed to provide more space at interchanges, particularly in urban areas where land is scarce.

SNCF is to undertake a number of pilot station remodelling projects with the regions during 2009, and has confirmed that the multimodal station concept will be a priority for future development. 'The future can only be thought of in terms of public transport', says Pepy.

Operations and rolling stock

Rolling stock will be a determining factor, not only in terms of capacity and passenger comfort but also in designing operating patterns and ensuring that the network runs smoothly. Optimal traction and braking characteristics will enable trains to make rapid station calls. SNCF is planning to launch a research programme to define its 'regional train of the future', which will draw on new and existing technology to achieve high levels of performance and reliability while reducing construction, maintenance and operating costs.

Operating procedures will also be reconsidered in depth. 'We must produce more for less', explains Farandou, adding that 'we will no longer run trains like we do now, but will adopt methods now being used in urban transport'. These include concentrating rolling stock maintenance outside traffic hours, on secure sites at the end of a route or where traffic flows are strongest. Traincrew resources should be optimised to meet traffic requirements, and regular-interval service patterns should become more widespread.

As regards safety, SNCF is planning to replace its KVB intermittent ATP on the busiest routes with a continuous system known as KVB-P. However, this will only provide a short or medium-term solution, as KVB is expected to reach the end of its useful life in 2020-30 according to earlier studies. ETCS would form the basis for its replacement.

Four times the investment?

The biggest questions to be addressed are how much this programme would cost, and how it can be financed. Bernard Soulage, Vice-President of Rhône-Alpes region, does not think that 'TER x 4' will mean four times as many trains and four times as much investment. He points out that the average TER service at present is only 25% full. The first step should be to raise load factors by offering more attractive fares, he suggests, adding that 'we are too passive; we must develop our marketing capability in order to attract new customers'.

Yield management has already been proven on the TGV network, and while there is no question of using such complex market pricing for TER services, intermediate solutions may be appropriate. With many trains already running at full capacity during peak hours, one workstream will be looking at operating more services in the shoulders of the peaks.

Securing the means to meet their aspirations is one of the major tasks facing the regions. Soulage highlights the need to 'restructure the funding of railway services and, more generally, to introduce a more widespread employers' transport tax to provide at last the means for an ambitious rail development programme … we must get a firm commitment from central government'.