Passengers unhappy with SNCF service

A SURVEY conducted by consumer watchdog CLCV has revealed high levels of discontent with the French rail network.

The SNCF was criticised mainly for delays, prices and lack of information. Half of respondents had experienced regular delays and one in three found price information very vague.

Prices were the main cause of disappointment as 87.1% of participants said that they were expensive.

The recent fare increase in July did not help, but most critised what the CLCV said was a pricing "lottery".

As many as 20 different fares can be quoted for the same journey, which is very confusing for passengers.

Another grievance concerned the poor compensation rate on delays. The SNCF reimburses 25% of the fare for delays over 30 minutes, but this does not extend to compensation for "missing an appointment or arriving late at a meeting" as Thierry Saniez, a CLCV representative explained.

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