"Planète Voyages": for greener mobility

The transport sector accounts for 32% of national greenhouse gas emissions. Of all the long-distance modes of transport, rail is unquestionably the most environmentally friendly. In fact, while trains carry around 10% of passengers, they emit less than 1% of the transport sector's greenhouse gas emissions.

How does SNCF Voyageurs compare the consumption of different modes of transport on the basis of their CO₂ emissions per kilometer traveled? See below for comparison methods.

At government level, the roadmap is clear. With the National Low-Carbon Strategy (SNBC), France aims to contribute to the fight against climate change.

This contribution is only possible if we succeed in convincing the French who don't take the train to change their habits. According to a January 2024 Opinionway survey, although 69% of French long-distance travelers consider environmental impact to be important in their modal choice, only 30% regularly favor a mode of transport when it is more environmentally friendly.

While the average French person emits 10 tonnes of CO₂e per year, we need to reduce this to 2 tonnes of CO₂e per person per year to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

In addition, at the government's initiative, a law prohibiting domestic flights when a train alternative of less than 2h30 is possible, was created in 2021.

As a 100% electrically-powered long-distance rail carrier, we are a key contributor to the European strategy to reduce CO₂ emissions, which intends to rely on a strong increase in rail traffic throughout the European Union.

We are working to reduce our own carbon footprint by cutting traction energy consumption by 30% by 2030, while expanding our offering in France and Europe. To achieve this, we are relying in particular on two approaches:

• eco-driving, with 100% of our high-speed drivers trained in eco-driving and provided with a tool enabling them to apply it in the most optimal way (bearing in mind that eco-driving can save up to 10% energy on a journey),
• eco-parking (time-delayed closing of doors during maintenance periods), which reduces the overall consumption of the train's air-conditioning and heating system by 7%.

We also aim to reduce energy consumption in buildings by 50% by 2030.

We design eco-responsible offers with a small footprint, using as few resources as possible, refusing waste and following a 4R approach: refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle.

Our TGV trains are sustainable

Our TGV trains are designed in France, optimized to be as sustainable as possible, and 92% recycled when they reach the end of their life. The future TGV (TGV M) will even be 97% recyclable.

The circular economy enables us to reduce our consumption of resources.

We're applying it to our business, with mid-life operations designed to extend the lifespan of our trainsets by up to 35 years, and with a new industrial program launched in 2023, Opération Obsolescence Déprogrammée. This will enable us to recover and recondition several thousand parts from each written-off train, to extend the lifespan of 104 trainsets.

Our offers at the TGV INOUI Bar and in the Salons Grand Voyageur are eco-responsible

Our menu is designed to be as environmentally friendly as possible, and we are committed to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and our environmental footprint:

• Over 90% of our products are made in France, and many of them are sourced through short supply chains;
• Vegetarian offerings;
• 25% of our products are certified organic or from sustainable agriculture.

The bar offer promotes waste reduction and the fight against food waste. In 2021, the Bar TGV INOUI replaced the PET plastic bottle with an eco-responsible Tetrapack bottle (Tetra Top^®), avoiding the consumption of 16 tons of plastic per year.

Finally, in our TGV INOUI Grand Voyageur lounges, we also offer 100% eco-responsible services (organic coffee, zero plastic, digital press...).

TGV INOUI speeds up deployment of on-board waste sorting:

• A bi-flow selective waste collection service (packaging, newspapers and magazines, other waste) operated by cleanliness hosts is offered on 80% of TGV INOUI trains.
• Since summer 2022, glass waste has been collected for recycling by the barista.
• We are working to keep sorted waste streams separate at every stage from collection to delivery to sorting and recycling centers.
• Deploying bio-waste sorting is a very complex service to set up and is still under study, but it is eagerly awaited by 83% of our customers (Lab TGV INOUI survey - August 2023). The target date for future TGVs is 2025.

SNCF's ambition, in stations and on board trains, is to enable its waste to be recycled by 2030.

Help us to improve waste recycling by using the appropriate garbage cans or by asking our cleanliness host on trains offering the service.