The Paris metro will be idling on Thursday, November 10, with seven lines completely closed – lines 2, 3bis, 5, 8, 10, 11 and 12 – and seven others only open at peak times, from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. – lines 3, 4, 6, 7, 7bis, 9 and 13 – due to a strike to demand wage increases and improved working conditions, said know the RATP in its traffic forecast Tuesday, November 8.
Only lines 1 and 14, fully automated, will operate normally, but with “a risk of saturation”, warns the RATP. On the RER, 1 in 3 trains will run on average on line A, and 1 in 2 on line B at peak times. Concerning the buses, on average 2 out of 3 buses will circulate on the whole network with certain very disturbed lines. More information will be given tomorrow, warns the RATP.
As for trams, traffic will be almost normal on all lines, with the exception of lines T2 and T5. On line T2, on average 3 trams out of 4 will run in the morning and 1 tram out of 2 in the afternoon. On line T5, 1 out of 2 trains will only run from 5:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. and from 3:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
“The RATP invites all travelers who have the possibility to favor teleworking or to postpone their trips on the network”recommends the Régie, which apologizes in advance.
Some disturbances elsewhere in Ile-de-France
The employees of the RATP are called to strike by their inter-union to demand salary increases in order to cope with inflation, but also to obtain better working conditions and recruitment. According to management, wages have already been increased by 5.2% in 2022.
The social climate at the RATP has deteriorated sharply in recent months due to inflation, but also because of the opening to competition of the bus network which is due to come into force on 1er January 2025. “Since the beginning of the year, we have had a number of strike days that we have not seen for some time”recognizes a source close to management.
Absenteeism and recruitment problems have seriously disrupted the bus network since September and recently, the metro has also experienced failures, forcing Valérie Pécresse, the president of Ile-de-France Mobilités, to ask the RATP to return to 100% of pre-Covid supply.
Elsewhere in Ile-de-France, the network operated by the SNCF should also experience some disruption due to a strike launched by the CGT-Cheminots. The RER C, H and N trains and the T4 tram are concerned, but the SNCF will communicate more precise information on Wednesday evening.