Thousands of passengers faced significant delays on Christmas Eve as SNCF trains were blocked for several hours near Paris. The disruption, caused by a "person accident" on the high-speed Southeast line in southern Seine-et-Marne around 8pm, affected multiple long distance TGV and Ouigo services.
Train circulation was disrupted throughout the evening, with some passengers only reaching their destinations in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
While SNCF initially estimated delays of up to 90 minutes, many travellers experienced much longer wait times
At Paris Gare de Lyon, the Lyria Lausanne-Paris train was reported to be five hours late, while TGV services from Lyon Perrache and Marseille to Paris showed delays of four hours and 40 minutes and four hours and 50 minutes, respectively
Frustrated passengers took to social media to express their disappointment:
-"Ruined Christmas Eve + 5-hour delay".
-"Christmas spoiled! Thanks, SNCF".
-"Merry Christmas! 5-hour delay, almost seems like a joke".
"Christmas Eve is a bit ruined," complained one traveller. "Seven hours of travel instead of the planned two hours, on Christmas Eve, it's original"
"Great, I am stuck in a TGV, no water, no food. Really, thank you for this Christmas Eve, SNCF," wrote a traveller using the X-name Lifeisnotdaijobou.
French railways reported that some 10 trains were stopped, affecting several thousand passengers.
The company said that no trains were cancelled, but journeys took longer as trains were rerouted.
Despite the massive delays, SNCF confirmed on Wednesday morning that all trains arrived at their final destinations.
The company has promised full compensation for the most affected travellers.
(With newswires)
