The State and SNCF release an additional 1.5 billion euros per year to “regenerate” the aging rail network

“The network is the mother of battles,” Jean Castex is convinced. The CEO of SNCF welcomed the signing, in the middle of the night from Thursday to Friday, November 13, of a particularly important agreement between the State and SNCF Réseau.

This is a performance contract which sets in stone a 50% increase in spending dedicated to the regeneration and modernization of the French rail network. Or 1.5 billion euros more per year from 2028 to maintain and renew the railway tracks. An amount which is added to the 3 billion already invested each year, i.e. a total budget of 4.5 billion euros per year.

“There is a thirst for trains, there is a need for trains for our fellow citizens, for the planet. But if there is no network, if there is no solid, regenerated, resilient infrastructure, there is no rail traffic,” said Jean Castex on the sidelines of the visit to a rail renewal site in Trappes (Yvelines), evoking