The SNCF justifies itself after the fine imposed on Axel Alletru, para-athlete fined on a Paris-Lille TGV

TRANSPORT – No flexibility on board. After the emotion aroused by the story of Axel Alletru, a French para-athlete notably seen at the Paris 2024 Games, the SNCF defended its agent who had imposed a fine on the swimmer for having sat in a reserved place for people with reduced mobility (PRM), without a wheelchair, in a Lille-Paris TGV.

Denouncing an attitude “ inhumane » from the controller in a post shared on LinkedIn and in the press since this mishap, the French athlete is torn between incomprehension and disgust, just a few months after the Paralympic Games organized in France.

The context? Axel Alletru was fined on a TGV on Monday January 13 for sitting in a PRM seat, without being in possession of his wheelchair. A complex situation since the one who carried the Olympic flame this summer is “ incomplete paraplegic “. As he himself explains: “ I spend 90% of my time in a wheelchair and 10% of my time on crutches for urgent cases, standing up, walking a few meters or for medical reasons ».

Inflexible Controller

Which was obviously the case that day, since he was going to Paris to “ an urgent appointment » to recover « important things for (s)one’s disability”including a wheelchair, as he tells the Parisian. Given the timing “ very tight » to go to Paris, he did not order the ticket himself. Except that the seat assigned to him was upstairs, in second class. Equipped with crutches, going upstairs was not a viable solution for the swimmer. Who took a seat on the first level of the train.

Noting that three PMR places were unoccupied, he moved there. A habit for this six-time European para-swimming champion, who very regularly takes the train… in a wheelchair. “ While checking my ticket, she explains to me that I am not in my seat and that I will have to have my ticket regularized because the “armchair” seats are in first class », recalls Axel on his exchange with the controller.

Despite his explanations, supported by photos of him in a wheelchair, the controller remains inflexible. Result of the races? A fine of 149 euros, shared in a photo on LinkedIn.

A fine “not illegitimate” for the SNCF

What does the SNCF respond? Contacted by The Parisian This Wednesday, January 16, Laetitia Monrond, Director of Accessibility SNCF Réseau explains that the offender was first sanctioned for having sat in 1st class.

“The trigger for all this is that a third person bought Axel Alletru’s train ticket and this person bought a second train ticket, upstairs. Knowing that he uses a wheelchair or crutches, it would not have been necessary to book a ticket upstairs, whether in first or second class. »

The SNCF “makes the customer who is in a wheelchair pay the second class fare, because it is not his fault if he is obliged to travel in 1st class », specifies Laetitia Monrond. “ As Axel Alletru did not take his ticket himself, he must not have realized before arriving at the train that in fact he was not placed in the right place at all. ».

According to her, the regulation was scrupulously respected and its regularization was therefore not “not illegitimate”. This is precisely what the former pilot who was the victim of an accident 14 years ago denounces.

And if the SNCF representative emphasizes that “ there could have been other solutions “, however, she seems to blame Axel Alletru. “ I don’t know how long before the departure of the train Axel Alletru arrived but seeing that he had a 2nd class ticket, even if due to his mobility he could not go as far as car 8, he could at least go to car 3 where the controllers are generally located and explain the situation to them “, she believes.

« I hope that the fine will be withdrawn », Now answers the para-athlete. The Parisian specifies that the SNCF “ was in contact with a relative of the athlete “, more ” was not able to take a position on a possible cancellation of the fine ».

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