ow-fare high-speed rail
services operate where possible from less popular stations with lower access charges and use paths which are 20% cheaper than those at other times. The timetable has also been designed to maximise train productivity by avoiding any unnecessary trips to depots and keeping turn-round times to a minimum with the shortest being 26 minutes. As a result, Ouigo services run from Marne-la-Vallée Chessy to the east of Paris, which is adjacent to Disneyland Paris and served by RER Line A, rather than Gare de Lyon in the centre of Paris. They run to an irregular timetable with 14 trains per week to Marseille, six to Montpellier and Lyon, and a few Lyon - Marseille shuttles. Trains call at intermediate stations including Lyon St Exupéry, which serves Lyon Airport.
“We have carried slightly more passengers than expected, but the revenue is a little less than forecast because we offered a lot of low fares to launch the
brand.” Valérie Dehlinger
Photo: SNCF Arnaud Février
a serious fault on one set. “We optimised a lot of things to
improve efficiency,” says Dehlinger. “We set up a system to monitor closely what is going on. We have short lines of communication between operations and maintenance staff so that if there is a problem it can be dealt with quickly.
IRJ June 2013
For example, we had a problem on one of our trains recently so we sent a message to the maintenance team to explain the fault and enable them to organise spare parts and be ready for the train’s arrival - it’s the same idea as a pit stop for a Formula 1 racing car.” To reduce operating costs, Ouigo
Another cost-saving initiative has been to make better use of staff, so the same staff that check passengers’ tickets on the platform at Marne-la-Vallée then board the train to assist passengers during the journey. The trains have been reconfigured to increase the seating capacity by removing all on- board catering facilities, which itself simplifies the operation, and by providing only one class of accommodation. As a result, two Ouigo Duplex trains can seat 1260 passengers compared with around 1000 for a pair of standard TGV Duplex sets. A new design of lightweight seat has been fitted throughout the trains, along with power sockets for which passengers are charged a fee of ƒ2 per trip. A simple measure to have one large rubbish bin per coach rather than several small bins streamlines the cleaning process at the end of each trip.
The whole ticket sales concept has
been rethought to minimise costs. Tickets can only be purchased through
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