SNCF strike 2018

Old Mar 19, 2018, 2:35 pm
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SNCF strike 2018

I am travelling to France in early May and have planned a train trip during the period of the announced SNCF strike (here is an article in English: https://www.thelocal.fr/20180316/fre...lling-by-train ).

I would appreciate advice from anyone who has any insight into how this is likely to turn out.
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Old Mar 19, 2018, 3:40 pm
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It’s impossible to know at that stage. It can be anything from a lot of disruptions to no disturbance at all because the action will be cancelled.
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Old Mar 20, 2018, 5:00 am
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Thanks; I would appreciate any updates as the situation evolves.
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Old Mar 20, 2018, 9:02 am
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You can check with the SNCF for updates about your train. Information is available here under real time traffic updates.
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Old Mar 20, 2018, 10:40 am
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Thanks; it looks like they will update as things develop. That is really helpful.
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 3:50 pm
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Well, you can no longer book trains on the days officially announced as strike days. And you should note that disruptions start around 7PM the day before a strike and that the disruptions continue well into the morning of the first day after the strike. So, I am booking travel only for the one day in the middle of the three days out of five when no strike is scheduled. Pretty much inconvenient and I can't see how I can manage that until end of June.
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 6:31 pm
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I've found the C'est la Grève site (in French only) to be pretty helpful for basic strike info in the past: Liste des grèves en cours et à venir en France ? Cestlagreve .
I was planning two weeks in France in late April. I pre-booked hotels (all refundable) a while back to get good prices, and now I see that 3 of my 4 planned train trips fall on strike days. And they're on TER, too, so not reservable and likely to be jammed if I switch days. This was supposed to be a nice, easy relaxing trip, and I'm not super-invested in taking it. So I'm seriously thinking it's not worth the inconvenience.
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 8:15 pm
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Originally Posted by Giggleswick
...This was supposed to be a nice, easy relaxing trip, and I'm not super-invested in taking it. So I'm seriously thinking it's not worth the inconvenience.
You could always use a rental. In past strikes, getting around by car was relatively easy. The only exception was the refinery strikes that saw plenty of empty petrol stations (because people stockpiled fuel) and traffic jams caused by the backlog at open petrol stations.

Strikes by toll booth attendants can be quite fun. The barriers will be open and you can just pass. They even switch off the Telepeage. In my case the fun didn't last long. A couple hours later I arrived at the exit toll booth, where they weren't striking, the telepeage beeped and I was charged the correct amount.
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Old Mar 21, 2018, 9:51 pm
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Originally Posted by WorldLux
You could always use a rental. In past strikes, getting around by car was relatively easy.
That would be a good idea. But sadly, I really hate to drive even at home, so driving in unfamiliar territory is not within my comfort zone. Yes, I know I'm a wimp.
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Old Mar 22, 2018, 7:15 am
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Originally Posted by Giggleswick
...Yes, I know I'm a wimp.
Not sure why this makes you a wimp. It's completely understandable that you may not want to drive.
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Old Mar 24, 2018, 3:17 am
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Since the first strike days are scheduled for early April, it should be clear by mid-April if the strike is going to continue or not. Most of them fizzle after two or three days, but it sounds impressive when a trade union announces a 3-month strike, doesn't it? That's what they're counting on.
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Old Mar 25, 2018, 7:49 pm
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Information on refunds and on when you'll know what's running are on the SNCF's English-language site here: https://en.oui.sncf/en/train/strike .
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Old Apr 2, 2018, 7:50 am
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Originally Posted by Giggleswick
Information on refunds and on when you'll know what's running are on the SNCF's English-language site here: https://en.oui.sncf/en/train/strike .
Crap! I have ticket (First class fully refundable though) where the outbound (in June) will be affected. Probably best to book fully refundable flights in case, the strikes go ahead as planned. This is annoying given that taking the TGV is so much more practicable than flying into CDG.
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Old Apr 3, 2018, 9:30 am
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How badly do these strikes tend to hit routes like the TER around the Côte d'Azur?
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Old Apr 8, 2018, 11:03 am
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Originally Posted by olouie
How badly do these strikes tend to hit routes like the TER around the Côte d'Azur?
Really significantly I'm afraid.
SNCF show its contingency timetables 24-48h before. Regarding Côte d'Azur you may have a look here (at the moment for today & tomorrow) : https://www.ter.sncf.com/paca/horair...greve-sncf-ter then choose line 08. You can still travel (around 10 trains per day) but don't count on a seat at peak hours.
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