After tough negotiations with the regions, the Rail Pass will finally see the light of day this summer. Young people aged under 27 will be able to travel unlimited with TER and Intercités anywhere in France, for the sum of €49 per month. Guest on the Sud Radio morning show, Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete indicated that subscriptions for the Rail Pass will be open from
“the beginning of June”.
“There will necessarily be a website, it will perhaps be on the SNCF website directly
,” he added.
The minister was keen to point out that the Rail Pass deployed this summer constitutes
“an experiment”
, the system being likely to evolve in the future.
“The idea is perhaps to go further in the long term
,” he said, referring to a possible extension of the pass to Île-de-France from next year. The Ile-de-France region is currently excluded from the system.
“This is a technical question, not a political one. In Île-de-France, there is no distinction between the train and metro subscription, we should have separated metro and train in the past, which was not possible from 2024.”
The possibility of allowing pass holders to travel unlimited all year round, and not just in the summer, is also being considered by the executive.
Read alsoRail pass: price, operation, criteria… Everything you need to know about this new device “tested this summer”
Towards a Franco-German pass?
In the future, the subscription could make it possible to travel beyond French borders.
“Yesterday, I met my German counterpart, we are considering a Franco-German rail pass by 2025 to travel with the same subscription of 49 euros in France and Germany
,” announced the minister. Germany was the first to launch its
“Deutschlandsticket”
, a 49-euro subscription allowing all Germans to travel freely within the country.
“We start from a base, and we see how to improve the system little by little
,” concluded Patrick Vergriete.
During the interview, the minister also discussed the deployment of metropolitan RERs, a system which should concern new territories in 2024.
“Many candidates are arriving, we will send specifications to all interested territories”
, said Patrice Vergriete. The
“first certifications”
should be awarded in the coming months, making it possible to launch these new daily trains
“from the end of the year”
.
The Minister of Transport finally raised the subject of motorways, and in particular, the tax on motorway and airport concessions.
“It’s started, we will continue
,” assured the minister, thus confirming the extension of the tax for 2024 and 2025. As for the end of the first motorway concessions, planned for 2030, the minister said shown
“favorable”
to the French
“debating”
.
“The question is how we can use this windfall from tolls to develop rail transport and improve the condition of our roads. The issue of tolls is decisive,”
argued Patrice Vergriete.