Vandals have sparked travel disruption for thousands of passengers across France after setting fire to cables along key train lines between Paris and the popular south coast. High-speed TGV services between the capital and cities, including Marseille, Avignon, Montpellier and Nice, were thrown into chaos, leaving travellers stranded during the busy half-term holidays.
France's transport ministry and national rail operator SNCF confirmed that around 100 trains were affected, leading to cancellations and delays of up to seven hours for services run by SNCF Voyageurs, Trenitalia and Renfe. The chaos began early on Monday (October 27) when rail workers discovered a fire on cables just south of Valence station, between Lyon and Avignon. SNCF Réseau, which oversees rail infrastructure, said 16 cables were destroyed "over a distance of 25 metres" and that replacement work was already underway. Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot said the act was "clearly deliberate".
"Last night, railway cables were deliberately set on fire. These unacceptable acts of vandalism are severely disrupting traffic," Mr Tabarot wrote on social media. "SNCF Réseau teams are fully mobilised to restore service as quickly as possible. The police are on the scene - the perpetrators of this sabotage must be identified and severely punished."
Long queues built up at stations including Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse as frustrated passengers faced hours of delays. SNCF urged travellers to postpone their journeys if possible, warning that services were unlikely to return to normal before Tuesday.
"Our staff on site estimate that the repair work will last until early evening," SNCF said. "Traffic could resume tonight but will remain disrupted, with normal service expected from tomorrow morning."
TGV trains were being diverted to avoid the affected area, but SNCF warned the alternative route had "very limited" capacity following a separate cable theft on Sunday night (October 26).
The fresh wave of rail chaos comes amid a sharp rise in vandalism and theft targeting France's rail network, with copper cables often stolen for their scrap value.
Just before the Paris Olympic Games last year, arsonists carried out coordinated attacks on fibre optic cables across the TGV network, disrupting travel for 800,000 people at the height of the summer holidays. The then-Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, condemned the attacks as "prepared and co-ordinated sabotage" aimed at paralysing France's high-speed rail system.
French media received a letter from a far-left group claiming responsibility, but the true identities and motives of those behind the attacks have never been determined.
