One-euro tax on SNCF tickets: "As far as we're concerned, this is not an idea we're pushing at all," assures Jean-Pierre Farandou, CEO of SNCF.

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A guest on France 2's "20 Heures" on Thursday, June 19, Jean-Pierre Farandou, president of the SNCF, discussed the additional billion needed to finance the maintenance of the French network, and the options being considered, including a tax on tickets, to reach this sum.

SNCF wants to put a major renovation and maintenance plan on track. To achieve this, the railway company is seeking to raise €1.5 billion, which it could find by increasing passenger contributions by one euro per ticket, according to experts . "We need to explain the challenge behind these big figures, which is to keep the French rail network in good condition," emphasizes Jean-Pierre Farandou, CEO of SNCF, a guest on the "20 Heures" program on June 19.

But the missing billion to finance the maintenance of the network, currently assumed by the SNCF to the tune of three billion per year, is "not for right away, I am not asking for the money in next year's budget" , specifies the Bordeaux business leader, who assures that "the SNCF will do the work alone in 2025, 2026, 2027" . "But from 2028, it is essential that we find this additional billion if we do not want it to have breakdowns, broken catenary lines, slowdowns" , warns Jean-Pierre Farandou.

And he added, regarding the idea of a tax on tickets: "I think I understand that people find that the prices of tickets are rather too high, as far as we are concerned, it is not at all an idea that we are pushing."

Watch the full interview in the video above.

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