Unlimited travel for €60 a month

TRAIN users have been offered a €60 a month season ticket that gives “unlimited journeys” on the high-speed iDTGV service.

The offer is to mark the 10th birthday of the budget iDTGV service and SNCF says there are only 10,000 iDTGVMAX commuter passes available – first come, first served on the website at www.iDTGVMAX.com

Last night the iDTGVMAX website slowed to a crawl due to the numbers checking it out and SNCF said this morning it had already sold 6,000 of the 12-monthly passes.

Most of the 40 destinations offered are in the south and west – with no stations in the north-east or in Normandy – and there are also limits on the number of seats.

There are an average of 40 seats per train – with an extra 12 jump seats available if all sold out - and they must be booked online in advance. Bookings can be changed up to five hours before departure with smartphone bookings possible up to 45minutes before departure if available.

It is perfect for young people and students heading home for the weekend or those heading for a weekend away and, for the first time, the iDTGV service is extended to ski stations in the Alps.

Bringing in €7.2million a year for the SNCF it also helps the nationwide service to counter the rise in “covoiturage” car-sharing schemes linking major cities at weekends.

The iDTGV director, Valérie Dehlinger, said that €60 was the same as a “the price of a full fuel tank” and added the service had more than 50 destinations more than three hours’ travel time from Paris.

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