An electrical outage on the SNCF network forced around 600 passengers to spend part of the night from Friday to Saturday on a train parked in the Landes, the railway company said.
Two hundred passengers of a TER, which left Hendaye at the end of the afternoon bound for Bordeaux, were first stuck in their wagons towards Ychoux, in the north of Landes, after a catenary break, according to the SNCF. Around 12:30 a.m., they were then “transhipped” by a specially chartered train, aboard the Hendaye-Paris TGV, stopping with 400 passengers at the Morcenx-la-Nouvelle station (Landes), 40 kilometers to the south, specified the regional communication of the SNCF.
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“Nearly 1,000 passengers” impacted by the breakdown
Police and firefighters were deployed to support the railway operator's emergency services. The 600 passengers were all dropped off at Bordeaux station at 3:00 a.m. in the night, with up to 9 hours late for TER passengers.
In total, several trains and “nearly 1,000 passengers” were delayed by this electrical index, restored overnight, Minister Delegate for Transport François Durovray indicated on RTL on Saturday. “Obviously, I associate myself with the difficulties that have been experienced by users. It's always very painful. And on the other hand, you imagine the mobilization of all the actors of the SNCF, the prefectures, civil protection (…). What I can assure you is that there is a total mobilization of services,” added Mr. Durovray.
According to the SNCF, which apologizes, all affected travelers were offered a night in a hotel and a new ticket for this Saturday. They will also receive compensation of “150% of the price of their ticket”.
