But where have the “TER shipwrecks” gone, who gained some notoriety during the 2015 regional election campaign by denouncing an unbearable situation, thus adding another element to candidate Estrosi’s anti-socialist propaganda themes?
The question is anything but rhetorical because the situation has hardly improved when looking at the figures and statistics, and the “shipwrecks” should come back into play to raise the issue instead of having gone silent after a single round.
In 2016, in terms of lack of punctuality, the Paca region tops the podium.
The number of TER trains running more than five minutes late reaches over 15%, compared to 9.22% for the national average.
And if you look at the map of France, you can see that 10 percentage points separate the Paca region from Alsace (4.7% of trains delayed).
There must be a reason, right? Or do Alsatian railway workers have different DNA from the Provencal ones?
Immediately after being elected head of the regional authority, Christian Estrosi made a big fuss by accusing the SNCF of not respecting the agreement binding the two entities, then he lowered his tone while mentioning the possibility of opening up to competition.
Someone should explain to him that his mere will is not enough when there are general rules and agreements.
In this case, the European Union allows for opening up to international competition starting in 2019, which would not have any operational consequences before 2023.
The regional president wants to advance this deadline to make PACA the “pilot” region, but his ambition does not sit well with the railway company, which has significant influence capabilities and also does not lack political support…
In the meantime, he should assert his reasons within the contractual framework, which drastically limits the options, despite the 291 million euros that the SNCF is asking from the region for services rendered, from which the region wants to deduct an amount as a penalty for excessive delays.
