Studio Laure – stock.adobe.com
The families, who used the company’s Junior & Cie support service, arrived at the platform three minutes before departure without having carried out the obligatory check-in.
Disembarked from their TGV by the police even though they had a valid ticket. This is the misadventure experienced by Louis (13 years old), Jeanne (11 years old) and Oléa (8 years old) this Saturday, April 27. Having left Lille to reach Rennes, the young travelers were surprised to see the police come to Roissy – Charles-de-Gaulle station to exclude them from the train. After an hour’s journey, they found themselves in the Paris airport police station where “they were well received», Reports one of the parents to The voice of the North .
For this trip, the parents used the SNCF child support service, Junior & Cie. Created in 1979 and supervised by professionals, it is available to 130 destinations during school holidays and 20 destinations on weekends, for a supplement of €37 to €56 on top of the ticket price. You are asked to arrive at the station between 30 minutes and one hour before the train’s departure (depending on the station), while the attendant carries out check-in (identification of the child, labeling of the luggage, etc.) and thus secures care.
Journeys without adults not authorized for children under 12 years old
Problem: as SNCF Voyageurs recalls, the parents arrived at the platform only three minutes before the train’s departure, a delay due, according to them, to traffic jams on the road. Just enough time to get their children on the TGV, without having to do the compulsory check-in. However, because they had not been registered, the young passengers were not legally under the responsibility of the on-board staff. And SNCF regulations only allow children to travel without an adult representative from the age of 12. Only Louis, aged 13, could make his journey alone.
LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST
“In order not to take any risk for the children, they were therefore handed over to the forces (…) who took charge of the children and contacted the parents as provided for in the normal procedure.», underlines SNCF Voyageurs to the Parisian. The families, who urgently picked up their children at Charles-de-Gaulle airport, filed a lawsuit against the company. Despite this mishap, the children will make their return trip from Rennes to Lille this Sunday, again using the Junior & Cie service.
ON VIDEO – Images of the “TGV of the future” revealed by SNCF
” data-script=”https://static.lefigaro.fr/widget-video/short-ttl/video/index.js” >
