FRANCE: Incumbent SNCF Voyageurs has been awarded the first passenger train operating contract to be tendered by the Pays-de-la-Loire région.
The contract covers the operation of tram-train services on the Nantes – Chateaubriant and Nantes – Clisson lines, as well as the Sud Loire rail network comprising the Nantes – Pornic/Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie, Nantes – La-Roche-sur-Yon – La Rochelle/Les Sables d’Olonne and Nantes – Cholet – Angers lines.
These routes account for around 30% of all regional services in Pays-de-la-Loire, totalling 196 trains per day.
The call for tenders attracted five responses, with bids submitted by SNCF Voyageurs, Transdev and Regioneo. The région said SNCF Voyageurs had submitted the highest ranked technical bid.
The national passenger operator intends to create a dedicated subsidiary to operate the contract, which is due to run for 10 years from December 2024.
The région expects the new deal to reduce its costs by 25%, generating savings of €100m over 10 years. This will be used to fund an increase in services and the construction of a new depot.
There will be a small increase in tram-train services from the start of the contract. From December 2026 there will be a 26% increase in services on the Sud Loire routes, rising to 33% by December 2030, with more trains calling at rural stations. All trains will have on-board staff from 2029, and there will be 18 new ticket sales points.
The current fleet of 25 Alstom Citadis Dualis U53500 tram-trains and the existing Doulon depot will be transferred to the new contract. A new depot is to be built in Nantes to maintain the Sud Loire fleet, which comprises 10 Régiolis B84500 electro-diesel multiple-units, 17 AGC X76500 DMUs and 10 AGC Z27500 EMUs.
Future contracts
The regions of Pays-de-la-Loire and Normandie have issued jointly a prior information notice for a tender covering the operation from 2030 of the so-called Etoile Mancelle network, with services radiating from Le Mans to Sablé-sur-Sarthe, Angers, Laval, Caen, Tours, Alençon, Château du Loir and Nogent le Rotrou.
Tenders are also planned for the operation of the Boucle Loire Bretagne covering routes from Nantes to Rennes, Brest, Quimper and Sablé sur Sarthe from December 2028, and the Axe Loire services connecting Nantes, Redon, Le Croisic, Saint Nazaire, Savenay, Ancenis, Tours and Orléans from December 2031.
