Potential for disruption in France?

[181]

I'm considering a brief visit to Normandy sometime between now and Christmas; this would involve some travel on regional trains and local buses. France is presumably feeling some of the same inflationary and public spendng pressures as the UK, it has a reputation for militant workforces, and I did see a passing mention recently of a transport strike in Paris. Does anyone know whether there is any significant likelihood of strikes that might affect my plans, how much warning there would be of any strikes, and what would be a good source of information?

And are French buses and trains currently suffering from driver shortages like in the UK?

https://www.ter.sncf.com/normandie/se-deplacer/info-trafic/greve currently indicates no planned strikes, which seems promising, but I thought it would be worth seeing whether anyone here had any advice.

 

[22pilgrim]

I'm considering a brief visit to Normandy sometime between now and Christmas; this would involve some travel on regional trains and local buses. France is presumably feeling some of the same inflationary and public spendng pressures as the UK, it has a reputation for militant workforces, and I did see a passing mention recently of a transport strike in Paris. Does anyone know whether there is any significant likelihood of strikes that might affect my plans, how much warning there would be of any strikes, and what would be a good source of information?

And are French buses and trains currently suffering from driver shortages like in the UK?

https://www.ter.sncf.com/normandie/se-deplacer/info-trafic/greve currently indicates no planned strikes, which seems promising, but I thought it would be worth seeing whether anyone here had any advice.

Information here:
https://travelfrancebucketlist.com/train-strikes-in-france-info-tips/

https://www.angloinfo.com/how-to/france/transport/public-transport/strikes

 

[181]

Thankyou -- those look useful.

 

[Gordon]

Strikes on railways in France are endemic. There have been strikes on a regular 'every so often' basis every year for decades, so not much has changed.

For this reason France has long since had a legal minimum service level.

 

[rg177]

The screens at Annemasse this morning had a message to the effect of "Strikes ongoing. TER severely disrupted."

I assume much like the warnings about TPE when you buy a ticket, this is just a message left on by default. Mostly as everything is running normally - in fact to a very high level of reliability!

 

[duncanp]

I would recommend having a look at https://www.cestlagreve.fr/

Strikes (grèves in French) are so common in France that someone has put together a website showing all current and upcoming strikes.

You can filter by area and also sector, and currently the website is showing no strikes on the SNCF in Normandie between now and Christmas.

But do keep checking in case of any updates.

​

 

[mike57]

Returned from a week in Paris and surroundings at the begining of October. We travelled by train to places out of the city and metro in the city centre (mainly, the odd bus at the start or end of a journey). So in a week of fairly intensive travelling by public transport (every day somewhere) we encountered one problem, a delay on RER A to the east of Paris. held us up for around 20-30 mins. If we had been in the UK then I doubt we would have gone a week without at least one major problem, so as long as you avoid their strike days it will be I suspect a better experience than here.