New trainsets to run on Intercités lines in 2027
Oxygène trainsets—offering greater comfort and more space—will replace the existing Corail Intercités trains on the Paris-Clermont-Ferrand and Paris-Orléans-Limoges-Toulouse lines starting in 2027. The phased roll-out will continue with Bordeaux-Marseille services in 2028 and 2029.
Improved rolling stock eagerly awaited
Designed by Spain’s CAF, the new trainsets were unveiled at the Villeneuve-Saint-Georges maintenance depot, south-east of Paris. Production is now underway at Reichshoffen, 50 kilometres north of Strasbourg. The new equipment will be phased in as Corail Intercités conventional trains are retired.
The first Oxygène trainsets are scheduled to enter service on the Paris-Clermont Ferrand and Paris-Orléans-Limoges-Toulouse (POLT) lines in 2027, followed by the Bordeaux-Marseille line in 2028 and 2029.
Raising the bar: more seats, more comfort, more features
Each trainset has 420 seats—20 more than current models—and enhanced comfort and features in both 1st and 2nd class. This includes:
- Improved accessibility for passengers with reduced mobility, who can opt to remain in their wheelchair or transfer to a seat equipped with an assist bar and call button.
- Ergonomically designed seating.
- Wifi, personal power points and USB ports at every seat, including 2nd class.
- Live onboard updates of passenger information.
- Onboard video surveillance.
- Dedicated space for 10 bicycles, each with power points
- Onboard catering space for food and beverage breaks
- Live transmission of driver’s cabin views
- Reserved seating with clearly marked bookings
28
new Oxygène trainsets to start, with 22 more in 2028 and 2029
€1.36bn
invested by the French State in 50 Oxygène trainsets
2.6m
passengers carried each year on the POLT line, and 1.9m on the Paris - Clermont-Ferrand line
Strong support from the French State
Total investments funded by the French State, which Is the Mobility Organizing Authority (MOA) in charge of national development rail services, break down as follows:
- €715m from the State for 28 trainsets on order for the Paris-Clermont-Ferrand and Paris-Limoges-Toulouse lines,
- €650m from the State for 22 trainsets to ply the Bordeaux-Marseille line, and provision for maintenance facilities,
- €100m from the State for developing new maintenance facilities in the Paris Region (at Ivry-sur-Seine and Villeneuve-Saint-Georges depots) and in other parts of France (Clermont-Ferrand and Brive-La-Gaillarde).
Network regeneration and upgrades
SNCF Réseau and the French State have committed nearly €3bn to modernize the rail network.
Altogether €1.6 billion (100% funded by SNCF Réseau) for infrastructure renovation through 2026, with €257 million from the State specifically for the POLT line.
SNCF Réseau will invest €760 million from 2019 to 2026 to upgrade infrastructure on the Paris-Clermont line, with €130 million from the State and the Auvergne Rhône-Alpes region to improve power supply.