SNCF's DISGUSTING train between Spain and France

Bonjour à tous!
Welcome to this new trip report, this week we are taking a look at #SNCF international service to Portbou in Spain and even during this 36 min ride, there is a lot of things to say...
Enjoy!
- TRIP INFORMATION -
RECORDED IN JULY 2022
Railroad company: SNCF TER Lio
Train type : ZGC (Bombardier AGC family)
From : Portbou to Perpignan
Time : 36 min
Price : Around 9€ one way (during the summer season it's likely to find 1€ ticket)
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00:00 : Intro
01:02 : Portbou's unique station
02:15 : The TER to France
02:55 : The ZGC from Bombardier
03:37 : Boarding
03:55 : Seat check
04:50 : Leaving Portbou
05:13 : The old Talgo installation
05:37 : Bonjour Cerbère 🇫🇷
06:38 : Mid roll ads
07:02 : Stunning ride along the Mediterranean
08:12 : Walkthrough of the train
09:04 : Toilets Time
09:32 : Wineyard
10:00 : SQUEAKY
10:16 : Approaching Perpignan
10:29 : Conclusion
10:58 : Outro

[@valeriebassett3107]

There is no excuse for people to leave their trash, it shows disrespect and laziness. I really enjoy your videos. The scenery is beautiful. Can't get over how blue the Mediterranean sea is, so beautiful. Thanks for sharing. Have a great day.

[@francisdoss8642]

How true Valerie...I always think 'we' (whoever in the world...!) can call ourselves 'Developed' only (figuratively speaking...) when we leave the wash-basins and toilets clean for the next person...What say...😊

[@mbmhmd1]

Dumb people leave their trash

[@brokkrep]

This is something, that really bothers me about France. Garbage everywhere, especially bottles and bags out of plastic.

[@waynecopple385]

The lack of cooperation between the French and the Spanish in regards to international rail travel is ridiculous. This, at a time when the EU is supposed to be reducing obstacles for international train service. Too bad someone can't knock their thick heads together.

[@AL5520]

The EU is working to do that but it's not that simple, and big companies lile RENFE, SNCF or DB are not the main problem (although they do try to prevent or reduce competition). Different countries developed different systems which creates an incompatibility problem. The most noticeable is the gauge. Spain's regular network *and Portugal's) uses Iberian gauge of 1,668 mm, France and many other countries use the standard gauge of 1,435 mm (which is what Spain uses for high speed lines), former Soviet Union countries and Finland use 1,520 mm (in Finland it's 1,524 mm but it's close enough to be interchangeable) but that's not the main problem. They also use different electrification systems and different signaling which makes it hard to offer international rail travel (that requires many times to change locomotive in each country). They are working to change this by opening local rail lines to competition with open access (even in France there is no a high speed competitor to SNCF from Paris to Milan operated by Italo), by helping countries change, at least on main lines, to standard gauge with the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T). As mentioned, in Spain the high speed network is standard and they started building the Rail Baltica project connecting Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania with Poland with standard gauge and to Finland (by ferry for now, a tunnel in the future) as part of the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor. For signaling they've created the European Train Control System (ETCS) that is, slowly, being implemented around Europe (mostly on high speed lines in the first stages) and in other countries like Mexico, India, Australia, China, Israel (nationwide - It's a small country with a small network) and even in Canada (in the future upgrade to the Toronto region GO Transit service). Electrification is the hardest. New line are usually built with the de-facto standard of 25 kV AC but not by all. There are trains capable of using two, or more, standards but they are more expensive.

[@javierjimenezmartinez5613]

It is France who is putting barriers for that cooperation. And it has been France who stopped cooperating with Spain.

[@chabissit]

To be honest it's not just the long distance trains from Cerbere being discontinued, most of them having been night trains. I think there's not a single night train in Spain anymore, when they had been the backbone of long distance (national) travelling, for example, in Barcelona. I can't see this times coming back, a night train will be an unaffordable luxury for a railroad operator.

[@LucaE191]

@@AL5520 just a correction, the competitor to the TGVs on the Paris - Milan is Trenitalia not Italo as it is a competitor on the high speed lines in Italy.

[@uncinarynin]

@@chabissit That's particularly sad when considering the Trenhotel were a fine offer from the passenger's perspective. Including the Elipsos on international routes. Now there's talk about some routes from central Europe to Spain but it remains to be seen what comes out of that.

[@MrWebbster1997]

It’s an excellent train to use if on interrail and want to avoid high tgv cost of reservations

[@kikeelvira9822]

Facts, i finished the interrail a week ago, and we use that train for the same reason that you said

[@osasunaitor]

Indeed! Most people who travel with Interrail or just backpacking trips towards the Iberian Pensinsula use this line and the Portbou station to connect with Spain, I know a few cases too. The TGV are for wealthy tourists.

[@hermenegildoc3933]

@@osasunaitor now u can use AVE for 7 euro

[@osasunaitor]

@@hermenegildoc3933 that's Avlo

[@opengeek]

@@hermenegildoc3933 on a really Morning or nightly schedule and can't being as much luggage you can on a regional, or MD. Avlos may work for one weekend trios but not sure for Interrail depending on what you're bringing with you.

[@SamaraStudio80]

I’m a TER train driver in northern France, there used to be little bins under each seat, but for a reason that I don’t know (maybe for the cleaning time it required to empty each individual bin) they removed them in all the trains that had this kind of individual bins, so the only trash cans available are near the doors, (you know the effort it takes to pick up your trash to one of these, so difficult!)

[@buzzukfiftythree]

Great video Thibault, thanks. We've not travelled down this line but have explored the area and visited Portbou and Cerbere stations in the past. I agree, it's a shame that the advent of the TGVs from Perpignan to Barcelona have had such a negative impact on the provision of trains on this line. I'm sure that if there were more trains people would use them as the scenery in that area of France is magnificent. As in Britain over the past 50 years or so, so many beautiful routes have been closed that would, with some investment, now attract a lot of passengers now. The success of so many heritage lines proves it.

[@franciscobermejo1779]

I think ADIF is becoming annoying because SNCF are being quite annoying to Renfe so they can delay competition from Renfe and other operators as much as possible...

[@osasunaitor]

You are right. SNCF is too protective of their own market, they refuse to let anyone else operate inside their territory.

[@entroenbanda]

Moreover, ADIF is only asking the same as SNCF did some time ago, enough Spanish knowledge for drivers coming to Spain. I think it's just fair.

[@bertvandepoel]

Your last point is very relevant here. It's so difficult to get to Spain by rail. I've been trying to do my academic conferences in Italy and Spain by rail instead of plane, but it's just a lot more expensive and takes over a day to get from Brussels to Spain/Italy (e.g. Padua or Santiago de Compostella). Even to Rome, Madrid and Barcelona, rail travel takes a long time and is expensive. The connections between Italy and Spain are also slow. This way, trains can't beat air planes, and I find that quite silly!

[@mariusdufour9186]

Connections between France and Italy are going to get a lot better once the new Turin-Lyon line and base tunnel are opened. I do agree that even with this, there is a lack of longer distance high speed services, which means that you waste time changing trains if you want to do something like Brussels-Barcelona. Of course, with current infrastructure, the fastest you could get a high speed train from Brussels to Barcelona is about 7,5 to 8 hours. Montpellier to Perpignan is a major bottleneck with nothing even resembling high speed rail in sight, a bypass that goes north of Montpellier could make it even better. A HSL between Bordeaux and Burgos would really speed up connections to Madrid and everything east of it. A new line from Paris, through Clermont Ferrand, Toulouse and then connecting with Huesca and Zaragosa would be even shorter in theory (it looks great on a map), but that would require an ungodly amount of tunnels and viaducts to get through the highest part of the Pyrennees at a decent speed. Another way for high speed rail to compete with airlines over longer distances could be in the shape of high speed night trains. Basically you take some of the older high speed trains that are being phased out of mainline service, you gut them and you fill them with couchettes and reclining seats. Then you have these trains do night runs over distances that take between 7 hours and 10 hours for a high speed train. You could get on the TGV in the evening in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Antwerp, or Brussels, and then you can wake up in Spain, or Italy for that matter. In an East-West direction you could go London to Brussels to Berlin, or South-East to Munich and Vienna. Once they finish the new tunnel to Copenhagen, you could also go north into Sweden to Stockholm and Malmö. We're starting to get enough of a network that this could work. That way you get out of the train well rested and have your entire day ahead of you, saving on a hotel night. The big question is to which extent it would be possible to schedule maintenance of high speed lines around both a filled day schedule and a bunch of night trains.

[@bertvandepoel]

@@mariusdufour9186 I agree. There's lots of good prospects with the new lines and tunnels, and it's very true that a line from Bordeaux would make a ton of sense. I fear however with the common delays on these kinds of projects, it's still going to be a while before we actually get competitive railway alternatives for popular flights. But my fingers are crossed for sure! Thanks for all the details too. I'm sure many other viewers will enjoy reading your comment, just as I did :)

[@mariusdufour9186]

@@bertvandepoel Sadly, the French government and the SNCF don't see the so-called 'Atlantic connection as a priority as they are very much focused on domestic high speed travel. They are already dragging their feet on the line to Perpignan and they have quite a few domestic lines in the pipeline. It's a small miracle the Turin-Lyon connection is actually getting built. European funding for high speed rail projects only covers a fraction of the build cost (varies depending on how wealthy the country is and how important the commission deems the project to be etc., it has never exceeded a third of the initial cost estimates for any single project as far as I know) and does not increase in case of cost overruns, so the financial burden of construction and the final decision on what to build when still falls very much on the national states and their, mostly state-owned, rail infrastructure companies, especially in wealthier nations where the European support represents a smaller part of the budget anyway.

[@bertvandepoel]

@@mariusdufour9186 I do expect that as part of climate commitment that the European Commission will have to intervene at some point and make more money available. Potentially after the Parliament forces it to set at a clearer policy and plan for international high speed rail. But things are moving at a glacial pace. I guess it's something for us all to lobby for!

[@mariusdufour9186]

@@bertvandepoel The thing is that High speed lines take a long time to plan and build, about 15-20 years on average, and that's excluding projects that need a one-off extreme solution like a ridiculously long base tunnel, the channel tunnel or some very challenging rail-bridge. In the end the issue is not money but priorities. There are only so many people with the expertise to design (and build) high speed rail, expanding this pool takes time, more if you plan to orient new engineering graduates into the field, less if you retrain experienced construction engineers from other fields like highways. In any case, the amount we can design or build in a given timeframe is limited. What to build and in what order needs to be laid out long in advance so resources can be allocated most efficiently. (it wouldn't be the first time a project is cancelled after years of design work or even after the start of construction) A true continental long term plan with long term financial backing also incentivises the industry to invest in capacity for the long term, be it expanding factories, attracting and training more engineers, buying additional equipment etc. A capacity which we might also export in the future (and in the present look at Alstom & SNCF in Morocco, RENFE in Saudi Arabia and Texas etc.) to help other countries build out their high speed rail networks. Rail Baltica, the new Fehmarn Tunnel, and the Lyon Turin line are all steps in the right direction, but they should be part of a realistic European project with a clear vision of what the future European high speed rail network should look like, a clear order of priorities, and estimated timescales. Right now, we have national HSR projects, and from time to time, a bilateral agreement to build a cross-border connection.

[@Backwardlooking]

Always enjoy and look forward to watching your videos. 👍🏻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@Grauwolf57]

Nice to see the line after 14 years. When I travelled to Barcelona in 2008 I used a direct night train from Luxemburg to Cerbère where I changed to the only cross-border longe distance service, a TALGO(from Montpellier, as I remember) to Barcelona. It was my first and last time to pass a gauge changing installation*. In 1982 I took the Sud-Express from Paris to Portugal, but not in the through couchette coaches which would pass through the gauge changing installation in Irún, so I missed that experience earlier, seat coach passengers needed always to change in Irún. *: not exactly. In 1990 I was on a special train trip(Baltic-Express) from Berlin to Leningrad. We had to change from standard gauge cars(mainly from the former DDR/GDR-government train) to russian broad-gauge cars in Brest, where we watched the change of the bogies of a regular cross-border train from or to Moscow in the hall outside of a train.

[@uncinarynin]

I love the coastline there. I remember being pushed through the gauge changer on the old Catalan-Talgo back in 1991. A train I was truly impressed about and that I will forever connect to the south French and Spanish lines along the coast. It's a pity the AGC which aren't that old are already in such a run-down state; they deserve more regular cleaning and a renewal of the seat fabrics. ÖBB 4023/4024, which are of similar age, are already through their refurbishment, which gave them passenger information screens, wi-fi, new seat covers, improved headrests and some entirely renewed seats.

[@marcporti4960]

Great Video! but just a small correction: in Cerbère, there is only one Iberian gauge track in the station, which is the closest to the main building, the other one is standard gauge as the rest. keep the good work!

[@FWDijk]

Thank you for this review! Last week we vere travelling by interrail along the same route. Our train was cleaner though much more crowded.

[@MJTributeChannel2040]

I went on a trip to Hamburg recently and used the regional Nah.Sh trains there. Compared to what can be seen in this video in the Bombardier train, they were much dirtier. The whole fleet didn't seemed to be in good shape even from the outside, which is a shame because the trains aren't that old. But when it comes to the interior, it gets worse. There's waste lying around everywhere and the toilets are in an indescribably disgusting state. I'd rather leave the train at any station if I ever have to go to the toilet on that route.

[@francisdoss8642]

Thank you Thibault, great to see the areas of Spain and France: had a number of friends from Spain and France, living in Auroville...Cheers mate...from an exceptionally wet Bangalore...🌧☔🌧

[@judefernandez827]

Good for you

[@mdioxd9200]

Would absolutely love to see you try the RER B or RER D during the summer 👀 Truly an amazing experience :D

[@annov7500]

Thankx for video. I didn't this route from Carcassonne, Narbonne, Perpignan, Banyuls-sur-Mer and it's fantastic:)

[@evanhinkle5136]

Good Grief, I have worked as a volunteer on equipment from the United States from the 1920s up to the 1970s that were in better condition than that, also trains do not have a service life, it is just something companies came up with to justify replacing equipment every so often, however a well maintained train could in theory last forever.

[@josejaviera5276]

2:43 blaming ADIF on this is wrong, they are only applying the same rules as France aka language requirements. Renfe drivers speak french to go into France and the opposite should also be true. It's SNCF the one blocking Renfe DB Flixtrain and Railcoop from operating in France while they run trains abroad

[@osasunaitor]

Thank you!! I'm tired of the hypocrite French blaming others for playing with the same rules as them. They have brought this for themselves.

[@ferseal4]

You're 100% right

[@martinflory6744]

Well, I disagree... SNCF has partnerships with DB and RENFE. If international trains don't run anymore in Portbou station its because all TGV/AVE services use the high speed line through the pyrenees. I really do think both national operators have great relationships, using codeshares on TGV from Paris to Barcelona, and on AVE services from southern France to Madrid/Barcelona... it is the same for DB, with whom SNCF has a strong partnership, with codeshared services between Paris and german cities!

[@osasunaitor]

@@martinflory6744 I'm afraid you are not up to date. SNCF recently decided to break the partnership with Renfe and stop the international TGV-AVE trains, starting next December. The reasons are unclear (they just said "poor economic balance") but it's obvious that the cocky SNCF doesn't want to collaborate with any foreign company. The French government also stated that they do not intend to finish the high-speed corridors from Bordeaux and Montpellier to the Spanish borders, therefore making the high-speed connection from the Iberian peninsula to Europe impossible to complete. They are isolating Spain and Portugal on purpose. Just France being France.

[@entroenbanda]

@@martinflory6744 Yeah that's why DB had a lot of issues and took too long to finally homologate the ICE 3 in France...

[@osasunaitor]

One of the main reasons why the cooperation between companies for international travel is so scarce is that the French Railways company SNCF is extremely protective of their own market, to the point of making it impossible for foreign companies (Renfe, Trenitalia...) to operate in France. Example: the SNCF-owned Ouigo low cost trains and Captrain freight trains are already operating several lines inside Spain and planning to expand even more without any problems. However, SNCF makes it *nearly impossible* for Renfe to operate inside France, evidenced by the fact that the international joint AVE-TGV high speed trains that are currently operated by Renfe+SNCF will be discontinued beginning in 2023 after an unilateral decision by SNCF. They don't want to cooperate or allow any competence, so maybe the French people should look themselves in the mirror when they complain about the lack of international trains.

[@rogeriomonteiro760]

In fact tipically french. As they self say: "des chauvins". Chauvinist and Xenophobe.

[@nleperlier5652]

Yes we don't like privatisation and the sanctification of the market, especially when it's imposed on us by some EU technocrat working for Germany and the Americans. ''Rail liberalisation'' : we didn't choose that, we didn't want that. If other countries accept it, that's up to them, that's why we're going there operating train (personally I would prefer them not doing that), but we won't accept a german company, located in Luxembourg, operating french trains, with Polish cars and Romanian workers paid and treated like slaves. And we don't like the EU ideology of destroying nations and creating a new one by force. Because we can go, inside a country, France, from Paris to Toulouse by train, they want to make it possible to go from Romania to France by train as if it was normal. No I won't stay 20 hours in a train. For that distance, I take a plane.

[@osasunaitor]

@@nleperlier5652 funny that you say all that nonsense while you compete against the public companies of other countries in a liberalised market. What a load of hypocrisy.

[@nleperlier5652]

@@osasunaitor Are you able to read ? I said : ''If other countries accept it, that's up to them, that's why we're going there operating trains'' So here is your answer. But personnally I would prefer the SNCF not doing that. Do you think it makes me happy to see the SNCF using money to operate trains in Spain while our services here are cut one after the other ? No. But if you're spanish your answer doesn't surprise me, I like Spain a lot, I go there a lot, but I discovered a few months ago during a student stay in Belgium with a lot of spanish people that you have a problem with France, and it dates back to Napoleon. Being treated of garbanzos is funny but seing the hatred of some spanish people towards France because of some tension with Napoleon 200 years ago was quite strange to me. Because we forgot all that and were friend with them but some of them took it so seriously, with hatred, intensity and emotion that you would think France militarily invaded Spain 3 days ago. 🤣 Back to trains : And who imposed this ? Us ? No. The EU, in other words the germans and the americans. So ask them the question about why there is a private market. For me it cannot work, both in France or in Spain. That's the same with gas and electricity. I don't know if EDF goes in a lot of countries (all i know is that they operate a power plant in the UK) but the French people don't like that, they want to keep their public company, and the ''elites'' are stupid by shutting down services here and investing abroad at the same time. The situation I would prefer would be one like in Switzerland. They don't go in other countries operating trains, the others don't come there and so they have the best train system in the world. But I would like to see your argument for defending the EU and its absurd rules invented by a brussels technocrat. You apply blindly whatever they impose on you ? Again if you're spanish you have another perception on the EU because you entered it at the same time that the democracy arrived so you think it's positive but for us it's all the contrary.

[@Lodai974]

In the same time Deutsche Bahn is very protective too,and don't talk about CFF ,and OBB,and Trenitalia... Only the high speed ,is open to markets. You said SNCF is very protective ,oh,so why i see Frecciarossa,ICE 3 in Paris stations.Few country welcoming other train in their HSL network.

[@danielrota7491]

daniel rota I stopped travelling with SNCF 12 years ago during a 4 months winter trip in western Europe. Why TGV are a nightmare continually changing trains to short connections times and missed trains hrs wait in frigid stations without waiting rooms waiting room. waiting till the last minute in the polar concourse, until a few minutes before the departure when the platform, is finally posted. You need to be super physicals shape to compete in the boarding rush. Paris railways stations WC were usually dirty and hard to find. SNCF nor the station staff had neither interest nor regards nor the least politeness for ignorant (of their system) like me, and my last trip: Lille, Cambrai, Paris (Nord), Paris(Est), Koln, Dortmund & finally Berlin. six connections, one missed Paris TGV 2hrs late 22hs versus previous schedule 16hrs (2years earlier) with one 2hr connection Paris Nord to Paris Est and very fast Paris Berlin first class night trains. So now in France (four times since) I rent a car the French highways are very good well built and maintained. It easy to avoid unnecessary big cities Paris among them) and driving is much better for my blood pressure. Even if like trains and loved trans Europe Express To me travelling has to be pleasant and convenient and without stress. Now with deregulation and foreign companies travelling in France the attitude will change. one good tip avoid travelling in France (except Riviera & Provence) during winter it very humid cold I have never been so cold in my lifetime not even in northern Canada were I spent many winters in the Yukon and the north West and Nunavu territoriest

[@maxinlux6570]

Dommage... ça a beau n'être "que" un train régional/TER, c'est quand-même une liaison internationale. Elle mérite mieux à mon sens. Shame. It may "only" be a regional/local train, but it is an international one, and deserves better.

[@Clivestravelandtrains]

I really enjoyed this as I lived in Spain 2004 to 2009, and my parents were living in Argeles. I used the Portbou-Cerbere crossing a lot and believe me it's much better now than it was then. In those days you couldn't board the SNCF trains in Portbou, they rolled back empty to Cerbere. Connections were so awful that sometimes I walked over the mountain between the two stations - there are footpaths and you can do it in just less than an hour (although you get sweaty oxters!). Beautiful views from the summit where the road crosses the frontier, and there's a memorial to the refugees from Franco who went that way out of Spain, and ended up in the concentration camps on Argeles beach.....

[@lioneldemun6033]

Even there Communist propaganda 🤬

[@lioneldemun6033]

@@Clivestravelandtrains those refugees were mostly Communists

[@lioneldemun6033]

@@Clivestravelandtrains I m sick and tired of the French propaganda in favor of the Bolshevik Spanish Republic read Pio Moa a Spanish historian formerly leftist he is re-establishing the truth about that period.

[@lioneldemun6033]

@@Clivestravelandtrains now teachers are fired if they don't speak Catalan do you find that right ?

[@anthonywarrener1881]

Thank you for a really good video. I have used that route several times and agree with all that you say. The AGCs are excellent trains, and once fully refurbished should be really good again ! Not sure about the new all red LIO livery, which is starting to appear in Toulouse !

[@scottyerkes1867]

No excuses for such dirty trains. Pleasant scenery and big windows. Thank you Thibault 😀😀💚💚

[@arokh72]

I've seen a lot of these rail videos, in Europe, and it still amazes me how close European cities are. I live in Australia, and a regional rail trip is much further than 36km, heck 36km and you're still in Sydney, with plenty of distance to go.

[@mollari2261]

USA has the same problem once you leave the Northeast. Part of why rail fell out of favor in the Jet Age and following the creation of the Interstate highway system.

[@jslasher1]

Menindee NSW, where I live, is 109km from Broken Hill, the next stop. That’s considered ‘next door’, so to speak.

[@enricomonti156]

Such a shame to see a train so dirty. And also to see the ending of that gauge workshop

[@icyndaquilhd7953]

Also in Italy most of the train connections with France are cut. Until some years ago we had Thellò the italo-french international train used especially between Nice,Marseille and Genoa and Milan. Now we have only regional trains on the sea path that connects Ventimiglia to Nice,Avignon and Grasse,the other connection with France are with the Frecciarossa high speed train between Milan and Paris,but other than that,the sea line is not on Trenitalia and SNCF anymore,like Renfe and SNCF. Yeah "European Union". In the 2000's it existed the train connection between Paris and Florence and Rome,miss that train so much,it was so useful.

[@flopunkt3665]

I had planned to use Thello in early 2020. Then I had to cancel for obvious reasons. Does that mean that Thello didn't survive the lockdowns and travel restrictions? 😓

[@icyndaquilhd7953]

@@flopunkt3665 as far as i remember yes,that was a reason but there are many more reasons that i don't know much because I have not delved into the subject,i only know some of the problems that caused the total cut of these trains,its sad but I hope they will start to reconnect the french and italian sea and who knows,maybe after the Frecciarossa Milan-Paris they will connect again Florence and Rome with Paris!!

[@xotan]

I live near Carcassonne. If I wished to travel by train to Rome, I would first have to go north to Lyon to pick up a train from Paris which would bring me to my chosen destination. The distance on the northward leg is getting on for 500 km (300 miles), which is simply ridiculous. The coastal line via Nice, Menton, Ventimiglia, Genoa is so infrequent and slow that it is faster to use the link via Lyon. Also it involves changes of train - note the plural. To fly, I would have to go to Toulouse and use its airport which is a journey of over 100km (60 miles) in the opposite direction, i.e. away from Rome. My preference is to use a train when I can, but I am stymied, Formerly I used to be able to take a train from Carcassonne via Narbonne to Barcelona, which from Narbonne operated as a high speed service. Now however, if I wished to use that route I have to change at Narbonne.

[@LosTrenesdePere]

I took this train couple of times from Portbou to Cerbere and Perpignan and wasn't that bad ;). Good video!!

[@A_Canadian_In_Poland]

Reminds me of when I had to get off the train in Zwardoń, Poland, WALK ON FOOT for 2 km to Skalité, Slovakia, take a BUS to Cadca, Slovakia and then re-join the rails from there. Despite the train track following that route.

[@donquixote2553]

I first travelled from the UK to Spain [North of Barça] by train in 1988. Those who've done it will no doubt have fond memories those days. The Talgo from Montpellier to Girona [my drop off] always ended up as a party in the bar... proper days! First time through the gauge changing thingy was an experience too. You say about the lack of interaction between Renfe and Sncf...believe me it was a whole lot worse 30 years ago!

[@johnkeepin7527]

Back in the early 1980s, I did travel between Paris & Madrid & vv on one of those, They were sleeping car sets, so no memory of the actual gauge change process! Gauge changes between China/Mongolia, and Belarus/Poland that I came across were more dramatic, with complete bogie changes done while one was on the train. The Russian carriage ran through from Moscow to Brussels Midi.

[@united768]

I am amazed by the standards in Europe, which must be so high that this is considered "disgusting"! I invite you to try the SEPTA Trenton Line from Trenton NJ to Philadelphia PA... No bathrooms, garbage scattered around, and even some flies/mosquitoes on my last trip

[@flyingporker100]

Thanks for a lovely video. I would have enjoyed that jouney. To me, your train looked tired, but reasonably clean - well in need of refurbishment. And the stations were tidy. In some parts of UK, the trains are full of litter, with chewing gum on the seats and beer cans rolling on the floor. There is graffiti on the inside and on the windows. The stations are bleak and unkempt - often like bus shelters. At least you have electric trains. Our diesel trains are smelly and noisy. While the SNCF and RENFE need to get their act together about the borders, it seems no worse than changing from one UK train operator to another. And you have a lovely journey. 😄😄

[@oliver.gilbert]

aha i have literally just gotten back from an interrail, having done this journey twice! It is very hit and miss with the LiO trains, we had a very tired overcrowded one and then a nicely clean pretty much empty service on the way back.

[@physiocrat7143]

I made that journey in 1963. It was a very long train of pre-WW1 four wheelers with wooden seats, hauled by a 1-4-1R steam locomotive. It was a very bumpy ride. The RENFE train was also steam as far as Gerona, and the carriages, also pre-WW1, had open balconies and had mahogany matchboard sides, wooden slatted seats and louvred windows to keep out the sun and let the fresh air in.

[@Martin-on2pp]

Nice video! About the bikes, they were dutch. Quite expensive bikes too. One question about the bikes area. Can you spot this place at the outside? Is there a sign? In the Netherlands that is allways the case.

[@rezaalan3991]

Great short distance trip. Hope this train got better treatment in the future. And there is better connection on Conventional train between Spain and France.

[@mollari2261]

Thanks, as an American, glad to know Amtrak isn't the only one lowering the bar for passenger rail service.

[@gab_v250]

I have a crazy idea to relaunch passenger numbers: an Intercités that goes from Vintimille to Marseille, Narbonne and Portbou (with the help of ADIF and RFI).

[@dionysos46]

Yeah, i confirm, it's crazy, how the delay potentials will make it run alike an equatorial africa train...

[@EpicThe112]

Why not make that a Talgo that uses the newer Figures Vilafant Track 3 Talgo Changer. That way it's a direct Milano Centrale Genoa Vintimille Marseille Avignon Narbonne Perpignan Figures Vilafant Barcelona Talgo Train. In the TEE Days this was the Catalan Talgo to Avignon then change to TEE Ligure Avignon Milano Centrale Connects to the TEE Mediolanum München Hbf Milano Centrale

[@juulvlog]

Holy... This service could use 'a lick of paint', like the marquise at the Spanish part of Portbou :)

[@ArchmageIlmryn]

Always fun to see your university represented abroad @1:52

[@giuseppealessandromariafin9434]

Having visited France I can say I found public transport dirty and crowded. With the exception of some new trains operating in the Ile-de-France (Lines L and J, if I remember correctly) the RER system and regional trains were always old trains that needed an urgent cleaning (i won't mention the ridiculous conditions of the metro lines and stations in Paris, not even good enough to get a 5/10). Air conditioning often off and no baggage storage available. I tried the TGV and it is on a completely different condition, SNCF really needs to apply the same maintenance that reserves to the TGV services to every other lines and trains. It is really a pity for a beautiful country like France.

[@larshelmin]

I like this type of TER trains, the layout of them are nice. The seats are more comfy than a 1st class ICE4 seat :) . Somehow the state of this train sadly seem to reflect the low priority SNCF has on this line.

[@markvogel5872]

Maybe the reason the train was so dirty was because of the type of person riding it......

[@timnewman1172]

YIKES!!! Do they use this train for hauling livestock? That is seriously disgusting, thanks for Sharing Thibault!

[@ElectricUAM]

It's sad to see how low the SNCF fell. The regular train services and TERs were very good in the 80s and 90s. Today, they are abysmal, unless you travel the TER services in and around Paris. The TER service here in Nice is pitiful. Rusted Corail cars and ex-BB 22200 locomotives deteriorating. The trains are late and regularly go on strike stranding people going to work. The tracks haven't been updated in decades which means trains today ride 20 to 40 km/h slower than twenty/thirty years ago. Unless you use the SNFC in and around Paris, its service elsewhere is mediocre, outside the TGV. By the way, I took the El Talgo in the 80s from Paris to Alicante and back. It was beautiful, sleek, and so comfortable. A long-gone era :(

[@Glenn1967ful]

So it's not only a British problem then. Our railways suffer from a complicated fares structure, a maximum speed of 125 mph on domestic services( compared with 186 mph in some other European countries) and some very poor local services. However, most of the country has very frequent services, the Pacer DMUs have finally been scrapped, and electrification is being expanded.

[@ElectricUAM]

@@Glenn1967ful Yup, sounds like you guys are experiencing the same type of selective management. I live in the US where no one talks of electrification and hails new 3% less pollution two-stroke diesel locomotives. I don't know. It's like we're sitting on a goldmine with rail transportation with efficiency and a fairly low-carbon footprint, but there are no concrete plans to bring it to the next level.

[@lioneldemun6033]

@@Glenn1967ful ....and 🍒 on the 🍰 : Britain, after all, is small....

[@Alex_Bert_]

If you want to reach Spain from France by train, you are practically obligated to use the TGV!

[@ImranKhan-Noonien-Singh]

Not necessarily you can get the Intercities de Nuits from Austerlitz from Paris to either Latour De Carol or Cerbere/Portbou

[@ImranKhan-Noonien-Singh]

@O.G Autistler Paris Gare D'Austerlitz

[@opengeek]

There used to be a lot of smuggling between Spain and France so it's logocal the entrance is not really wide. However I spent some time arround the station as a friend of my parents has a home really near to the station and I used to play video and seek there. The same friend and used to live when he was younger in the houses for the people working in the station (really great houses they're still there in a street at the same level of the station. I'll aways like to see Port-Bou in your vídeos.

[@yagi3925]

Merci pour ce reportage, Simply Railway: intéressant et bien référencé comme à l'habitude. Quand j'ai vu le titre de la vidéo, j'ai d'abord pensé qu'il s'agissait du trajet Barcelone-Toulouse via la Tour de Carol mais je vois qu'il s'agit d'autre chose. Intéressant, ce Port Bou-Cerbère. N.B.: je voudrais juste signaler que le titre de la vidéo serait plutôt "SNCF's filthy train". L'adjectif "disgusting" a souvent un sens figuré, celui de dégoûtant au sens moral. En voyant le titre de la vidéo, je me suis demandé ce que ce train pouvait bien avoir de moralement choquant, puis j'ai compris qu'il était dégoûtant au sens physique. J'espère que vous ne m'en voudrez pas pour cette remarque, qui se veut méliorative.

[@WendysCove]

I agree, they should clean the train. But grt video. Nice to see some of France.

[@brugudel]

I just travelled between Brussels and Hendaye by train with my family. Never again. Horrible service, bad international connections, and giving up a d getting family to drive 2h to Hendaye because crossing the border is horrible. Add delays, missed connexion, bad service. Being environmentally conscious and train lover is very hard in parts of Europe. And expensive AF

[@martian9999]

which borders caused you difficulties? Hendaye is in France, so I don't understand the problem. Google says it takes around 75 minutes to get from San Sebastian to Bayonne; is that incorrect?

[@antoniovitellaro]

Few weeks ago i was in cerbere at a friend's house, and had to go back to italy, through Barcellona (since it was the closest airport and by train it would have taken me like 13hrs). I ended up asking my friend's grandma to drive me to portbou since there were so few trains from cerbere, and at such not convenient times. I mean, if i compare it to the hourly trains we have from Milan to chiasso (swiss), plus the intercity tu zurich....this service is preatty damn poor

[@lioneldemun6033]

...sad thing you speak with SNCF operatives/ employees they think they offer the best service in the world!

[@antoniovitellaro]

@@lioneldemun6033 🤦‍♂️

[@219enri1]

I don't see it so well in the video that the train was so dirty, except for the dirty seat covers. But what is very bad in France is the poor maintenance of the railway facilities and stations. Weeds everywhere, peeling paint on the buildings, bleak and poor. Most of the staff are unmotivated. It's a pity, train journeys in France are no fun.

[@allanralston7014]

I'm surprised at your level of criticism, its a good train that will shortly be refurbished, the graffiti should have got the train taken out of service admittedly, but if you want to see disgusting trains in the true sense of the word come to Northern England where 40 year old diesels provide a stopping service between Liverpool and Manchester, two of our largest cities

[@bandvitromania9642]

You want the dirtiest trains in Mainland Europe? Try some Romanian trains on rural service

[@Deqoid_123]

Serbian trains are awful, just to confirm

[@bandvitromania9642]

@@Deqoid_123 except the new "highspeed" ones?

[@AndreiTupolev]

Ah, the classic "my trains are always more rubbish than yours". Are we talking about Class 150s or 319s?

[@Deqoid_123]

@@bandvitromania9642 yea, except those bc their actually half decent

[@BMiklos]

I took a train from Toulouse to Latour de Carol yesterday, it was much more pleasant. The Spanish side is now reconstructing tracks until Ripoll, so I had to take two replacement buses (one through the border and one to Ripoll). Shame that neither the trains nor the buses are adjusted to the French side and the trains (run every 3h...) leave 10 minutes before the French train arrives (which also runs infrequently). Hopefully, speeds will be higher after the reconstruction and the schedules will be adjusted. It's much nicer than the Portbou one.

[@aucunoui8610]

How do you got the configuration picture of the train? I would like so much to know how

[@Citricut2]

Looking forward to the announced comeback of the Barcelona-Zürich night train, I hope this finally happens!

[@joemeyers3127]

The entrance to that station was creepy. Reminds me of some of the long subway tunnels I’ve learned to avoid in New York City.

[@CityWhisperer]

Don’t really get why he says it’s the only entrance, when at 1:45 you can clearly see a couple of doors that leave you directly on the street.

[@AndreiTupolev]

No graffiti though, which I must say surprised me

[@boyasia5874]

I luv old stations and old trains. Reminder of the past and the passengers the trains had carried. Putting lots of shops in the train station will will limit its historic value. Not a whole lot passengers means low funds for repair and improvement. The train and station persona fits the region it serves!..rural. provincial, nostalgic. But am for cleanliness. A coat of paint will be great but not of a hurry. I would love the same vid during rainy season and during the holidays.

[@Clivestravelandtrains]

There are quite a few shops outside Portbou station at the foot of the steps, popular with French people who drive there for bargain shopping. Sadly, though, my favourite shoe shop recently closed down as most French people now drive to La Jonquera/ Le Perthus where the shops are bigger and there's more parking.

[@davidwebb4904]

Im doing this route next week. Perfect heads up.

[@trainsbreath6517]

Super😍

[@luisstransport]

Great trip report

[@jeromebano1125]

@ Nice one.

[@alexdfx8055]

As french, I'm ashamed of the SNCF...

[@brigittemartinez1983]

C'est le train que nous avons et nous en sommes fiers si c'est sale ce ne sont pas les autochtones qui en sont responsables mais plutôt les gens de passage sinon à part tes commentaires nuls tu as bien filmé le paysage

[@attenzioneallontanarsidall7940]

we are waiting for you again in Italy to try the new regional trains ROCK, POP, CARAVAGGIO, BLUES etc ..

[@Abnerbandanovotempoinscrito1mi]

Lindo trem simply boa viagem ai bom dia

[@apollosaturn5]

The stains on those seats are visible ass sweat marks.

[@johnburke1317]

Very nice video 📹 👍

[@timlilijinsheng4070]

7:03 I swear if this is ever put back into service it'd be a nice spot to get some photos of the tracks down beneath...

[@3506Dodge]

Do many in France travel on trains without tickets?

[@skytioytb5929]

With

[@lioneldemun6033]

Yes about 20 % of the passengers I would say

[@3506Dodge]

@@lioneldemun6033 WOW! Is that widely known? That would be a HUGE scandal in the UK! Heads would role at the train companies if that were found in the UK.

[@3506Dodge]

Yes, they want all international travel to be on their TGV. They are much more profitable for SNCF.

[@WDH59510]

Did you notice the bilingual signage (French/Catalan) as the train entered Perpignan ?

How did you buy the ticket?

[@wawax-productions]

I like AGC trains a lot. Especially the former 1st class seats 😍

[@pappuchak8605]

I really struggled to understand SNCF rail booking system. I have booked 3 tickets from Paris to Geneva for coming 27th May. I have been issued ticket with two reference numbers. The first one takes me from Gare de Lyon to Lyon part Dieu and the 2nd part of the journey is from LPD to geneva. Now in tickets of 2nd part only my name and DOB is reflecting in all 3 tickets. I am unable to understand if this is the system or something went wrong. Their customer service could not be connected. Anybody any idea? Also the entire ticket issued in French, so as an Indian its a little inconvenient for me.

[@pakroomitrains]

Excellent 👍👍👍 bro

[@Flexflex744]

In Germany, we have the so-called "Talent 2" trains (class 442), which seem to be a family member of this train. They are a lot more modern though and in a better condition.

[@kevanhubbard9673]

SNCF need somewhere secure to store the trains at night to stop the graffiti.While the problem isn't as bad as it use to be it's still serious and very costly to remove the graffiti but the view of the sea made up for it!

[@dominikr8428]

Regional trains in the south of France are horrible! Poorly kept and so expensive. And the prices change all the time. I don't get it - usually regional trains have fixed prices and that's it, in TER it's like a lottery.

[@mattc9998]

I went on an IC Brussels once and it was pretty awful. Bins overflowing with cans, dirty seats, dim lighting, graffiti all over the exterior of the train. Also very slow.

[@HumbertoMesa]

Thanks for the ride 🇺🇾

[@robinhedley6535]

well ... did the exact same thing ... came from barcelona and there wasnt even a trian departing ... the whole day

[@dennisud]

Ye,s after cleaning it up I would have had a problem with that train on a region line here.

[@Kaizerzydeco1]

Canada’s VIA Rail Trains are also often dirty but are also much, much older.

[@sensaxaar]

l'annonce sonore me pertube... "bienvenue à bord de ce ... train?"😂😅

[@manmeetsinghmahajan6183]

Amazing.

[@markt1387]

Port Bou looks like a really charmless and dull station

[@carlosjuarez6405]

Long time ago since the magnific and excellent service of elipsos train …. These was and eficient connection

[@geerd1]

In a video of only 11 minutes I wouldn’t do the effort of putting time stamps in it 😉

[@cedricklyon]

Our SNCF regional trains are dirty. That's true :(

[@georgebattrick2365]

So you are saying that Spanish trains go through to Cerbère and French trains go through to Portbou, and there are tracks of both gauges between the two stations?

[@MainInternetUser]

They really put the dirtiest trains on this line

[@AsturArcadia]

Being accustomed to civilised, clean Japanese local trains, i nearly vomited at times while watching this.

[@marcosjavieralemangarcia8859]

Marcos Javier Alemán García 0 seconds ago SCNF could finish their services in Portbou, this will help a lot of people to go cheap and convenient to Girona or even Barcelona, it is a win win for both companies....

[@CityWhisperer]

8:25 How did you manage to cross that roadblock jeez

[@edmirballiu9264]

That's not disgusting anyway I like all your videos and I'm a big fan of yours

[@dougschlitz8123]

I guess people shouldn’t complain about Amtrak then !

[@291281]

Excelente

[@0steph00]

Hello, this does not excuse everything but the train ticket is cheap especially to cross the Pyrenees. Go and see in the UK, for example, how much does a train ticket cost? Anyway, I enjoy your videos, thank you.

[@daisy_blossom]

I live in Toulouse and i always see trains coming from Port Bou. They probably restore this line from a year.

[@AndreiTupolev]

Bienvenue en France.. and the first thing you see is a DB loco!