It was to be a revolution for millions of travellers.
A single platform that would unite the two main SNCF sites and applications: Oui.sncf (sales) and the SNCF Assistant (information).
Search for TER timetables, purchase or exchange of a TGV or Thalys ticket, information on current disruptions... Everything would now go through SNCF Connect.
In the pipeline for more than a year, the successor to Oui.sncf was born on January 25, 2022.
But the promise of simplicity is for the moment far from being honored.
If a new site or a new application often requires some corrections at its launch, it is clear that SNCF Connect exceeds all records of dissatisfaction.
If the application is rated 4.2/5 on Google Play, this rating takes into account the opinions published ... before the name change.
The most recent comments, often embellished with a 1/5, raise numerous malfunctions and point to the disappearance of many practical features that existed on Oui.sncf.
Read also “Yes” it’s over, here is “Connect”: what is the new SNCF app worth?
Missing features and bugs on all floors
It would be tedious to draw up an exhaustive list of everything that goes wrong.
According to SNCF CEO Jean-Pierre Farandou, 150 bugs (at least) have been identified.
Disappearance of the calendar of the best prices, impossibility of adding a stage to its itinerary or a trip to its agenda... So many features that the company promises to reintegrate.
There remain certain inconsistencies of which only the SNCF has the secret.
For example, if it is possible to buy a Ouigo ticket on SNCF Connect, you must necessarily go through the Ouigo site to modify it...
According to an internal note consulted by our colleagues from
RTL
, some TER tickets appear as "counterfeit" when scanned by a controller.
Travelers have noticed that their reservation disappeared from the application shortly after purchase... While others come across an error message when trying to pay.
Customers also point to the lack of ergonomics of the platform, which is based on a search bar inviting them to enter “One destination, one request”.
Thus, when we enter "Paris Marseille", we are suggested the rue de Marseille in Paris or the boulevard de Paris in Marseille... But not the route between the two cities.
Typing “exchange” or “cancel”, for example, surprisingly leads to no results.
Improvements expected by the end of March
How did the SNCF get there?
The digital subsidiary of SNCF Voyageurs, SNCF Connect & Tech, had however invested a lot of resources by mobilizing 200 developers for a year and calling on some 4,000 users to test the Beta version.
The issue was “crucial” for a site which could boast, before the Covid-19 pandemic, of being the leading French e-commerce site in terms of business volume (4.7 billion euros in 2018 for 110 million tickets sold).
The application now totals 23 million downloads.
Faced with the discontent of users, the Minister of Transport, Jean-Baptiste Djebbari, called on the company to resolve the malfunctions “
as soon as possible
”.
Its CEO, Jean-Pierre Farandou, promises that improvements will be made in the coming weeks.
A provisional calendar has been unveiled: addition of the ticket in Apple Wallet (early March), addition of reservations in the diary (end of March), calendar of the best prices (during the first semester)...
Read alsoParis-Lyon: we tested the difference between SNCF and Trenitalia
A competition that rubs its hands...
Trainline has seen a sharp increase in its activity since the launch of SNCF Connect.
Screenshot
In the meantime, the setbacks of the new SNCF platform benefit its competitors.
Trainline, Omio, Tictactrip... These multimodal comparators also make it possible to book train tickets (but also bus, plane or carpooling), both in France and abroad.
The prices and after-sales conditions (exchange, refund...) are the same as those of the official channels of the railway company, and national discount cards are accepted.
"
In the week following the launch of SNCF Connect, sales of TGV and Ouigo increased by 50% compared to the previous three weeks
," says Christopher Michau, Director of Operator Relations at
Trainline
.
The British platform also recorded a 28% increase in new customers compared to the previous record of August 2020. Affiliated with no company, but still offering the purchase or renewal of the SNCF reduction card, Trainline offers routes with 270 train and bus operators in 45 countries.
Thus and in just a few clicks, you can buy a TGV, Ouigo, but also Deutsche Bahn, Eurostar, Trenitalia, Thalys, Renfe-SNCF, BlablaCar Bus or Flixbus ticket.
"
Between Paris and Lyon, for example, we can offer an outward journey with Ouigo and a return with competitor Trenitalia in the same reservation
,” explains Christopher Michau.
... and offers unique services
Trainline offers a new function, “Récup' Delay”, allowing travelers who have suffered a delay to be notified of the compensation to which they are entitled under the G30 guarantee (1).
No form to fill out: the compensation request is sent automatically and passengers are compensated in a few days by voucher or bank transfer.
Going through the official SNCF channels, this more time-consuming process requires going through a dedicated site.
In the same spirit,
Omio
, which did not wish to comment on the launch of SNCF Connect, offers journeys with a thousand transport partners for train and bus journeys, but also by plane and ferry in 37 countries. , including the United States.
The German platform is particularly useful for finding trips in Europe, as is the French comparator
Kombo
(kombo.co).
No need, then, to search for information on the sites of foreign operators.
For its part, the French site
Tictactrip
(which does not yet have an application but a site, tictactrip.eu) has the advantage of suggesting carpooling (with Blablacar) and “combined” journeys (train/bus + carpooling ).
Convenient if you want to reach a destination not served by train.
Read alsoFrom Madrid to Warsaw, these 15 European destinations are accessible by train
SNCF defended by a former competitor
Still, the setbacks of SNCF Connect unleashed passions on Twitter.
To the point that Jean-Daniel Guyot, founder of Capitaine Train in 2009 (which will become Captain Train before its takeover by Trainline in 2016), adds his stone to the debate.
In a series of tweets, he delays the criticisms made of SNCF Connect.
“
The first Captain Train interface had... just a simple text field.
We thought we had an unbeatable concept there, which was going to crush the monopolistic giant.
Our customers would fall in love with this simplicity.
Test after test, we realized what a false good idea it was.
There are 1000 ways to describe the ride you want to take.
Far from shooting the ambulance, Jean-Daniel Guyot supports the SNCF Connect teams, which have been reinforced (+30% in staff) to respond to customer complaints.
“
I wholeheartedly hope that SNCF Connect will recover, because fewer train tickets sold means more cars on the road.
Let's hope that the message is heard... And that SNCF Connect gets back on the right track.
(1)
The G30 (for 30-minute guarantee) applies to all main line SNCF trains (TGV INOUI and INTERCITÉS), regardless of the reason for the delay.
It does not apply to TERs.
You have 60 days after the trip to make your claim for compensation.
