SNCFFrench words: SNCF , Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Françaisalternative words: French national railway company, French national railroad keywords: transport related topics: TGV , RER related web sites: http://www.sncf.fr , http://www.voyages-sncf.com , http://www.rff.fr , http://www.entreprise-sncf.com explanation: SNCF, French national railroad company, was created in 1938 by merging 5 private companies. Initially the government controlled 51% of the capital, but since 1982, the whole capital belongs to the state. In 1997, the railroad assets were transferred to another public company, RFF (Reseau ferre de France) in order to introduce competitions. SNCF operates not only classic trains but also high speed trains (TGV) and some Paris' suburban lines (RER), with total length of 32,000 km tracks and 180,000 employees. | |