Affordable train travel options progressively dwindling for the youth population.
"Saying goodbye to an affordable travel getaway"
That's what Louis de Carvalho, a student in BTS in the Jura region, had to say when he learned about the termination of Pass Rail, announced on April 23 by the French Ministry of Transport. Last summer, Louis made the most of this monthly subscription that allowed young people aged 16 to 27 to travel by train throughout France during the summer period at a cost of just 49 euros. With his journeys to and fro in the Jura region, and across to the Ardèche, Louis clocked up over 1,500 kilometers in just one month. "Without the Pass Rail, I wouldn't have been able to travel like this," he admits. He estimates his expenses (if he'd had to pay for individual tickets) to be well over 300 euros for all his trips. Louis had planned to replicate the experience in the summer of 2025. The non-renewal of Pass Rail has certainly *"complicated" his plans.
As for Louis and many young people, it is *"hard to find affordable options" at SNCF, as he points out. Since 2019, ticket prices have increased by 8 percent according to the national operator, and in 2025 alone by 1.5 percent. SNCF justifies this increase by escalating charges linked to inflation. In a nutshell, the customer's payment partially covers SNCF's maintenance costs, including railway tolls, which on average account for 40 percent of the ticket price.
For young travelers like Louis, the cancellation of Pass Rail meant losing access to affordable travel options during the summer of 2022. Consequences included increased travel expenses as students had to pay full-price fares or opt for more expensive alternatives. The Pass Rail encouraged young people to explore various cultural, educational, or leisure travel opportunities during school breaks, but its absence potentially limited such enriching experiences for students who couldn't afford to travel with full-price tickets. Some students turned to other options like standard Eurail passes with youth discounts (usually around 25% off) or EU-wide programs like DiscoverEU, although these options are less comprehensive or require specific criteria such as being 18 years old[1][3]. Overall, the termination of Pass Rail for summer 2022 represented a setback in affordable youth travel initiatives within France, affecting students' ability to travel extensively by train unless they could afford full-price tickets or alternative discounted passes available on more limited terms. This move emphasized the ongoing need for support for youth mobility schemes to foster cultural exchange and personal development through travel.
[1] https://www.euractiv.com/section/ mobility/news/discovereu-arent-teens-flying-high-over-eu-walls/ [3] https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=IDLEG_LOI_art_L311-4&cidSection Tarif=IDLEG_LOI_art_L311&dateTexte=20220101&urlSec=WDLEG_SECTION_LOI&cidSectionPere=IDLEG_LOI_ARTANN&dateCode=20220101&fastDoc=fastDoc&cidTexte=IDLEG_LOI_art_L311-4&fastInfosDoc=fastInfosDoc&fastSect=pendant&fastTab=itable&fastPos=1050335&fastColonnes=1&fastSearch=Pass%20Rail&fastResult=1
- Louis, who had been looking forward to using Pass Rail again in the summer of 2025, will now have to revise his travel budget as the affordable rail option has been terminated.
- The national finance ministry will receive a higher amount of revenue from the rail industry due to the termination of Pass Rail, as young people will now have to pay full-price fares.
- Louis and other students in Louis's region who relied on Pass Rail for public-transit may find it challenging to engage in personal finance practices like budgeting due to the increased transportation costs.
- The food, accommodation, and personal expenses Louis had planned to incur during his summer travels with Pass Rail have now moved into his personal budget, requiring careful planning and management.
- In light of the cancellation, industry experts may need to assess and recommend alternative affordable travel options for French youth, ensuring that the ongoing need for accessible transportation is met.
- The misfortune faced by Louis with the termination of Pass Rail might spur a call to action for French policymakers to address the issue of inflation's impact on personal finance, particularly regarding public-transit and transportation costs, in the mid-term budget planning for 2025 and beyond.
