The French group Sncf is preparing to strengthen its presence in Italy. Not just with links cross-border railways as has happened so far but operating directly on national high-speed routes, in direct competition with Trenitalia and Italo. The Société nationale des chemins de fer (Sncf), wholly owned by French state, presented today the application for a framework agreement to RFI, the Italian network manager. This was announced by the general director of Tgv-Intercity of the Sncf group, Alain Krakovitch. The French group already makes connections between Paris, Turin and Milan: “We will combine this with the entry into the domestic market,” explained Krakovitch, adding that the first trains on the Italian high-speed tracks will arrive “progressively from 2026” on the guidelines Turin-Naples And Turin-Venice. Trenitalia also makes connections with the Frecciarossa between Italy and France and within France in the section covered by the cross-border journey (e.g. Paris – Lyon).
“We have the ambition to cover 15% of the market by 2030,” explained the manager. “Why in Italy? Why we think high speed is well developedbut there is still a possibility of development, we think this market is not yet saturated“, he concluded. The offer will be daily with 9 return trains between Turin, Milan, Rome and Naples and 4 return trains between Turin and Venice. The used train will be the new one Tgv Mwhose first deliveries are scheduled for second half of 2025. We also aim to expand the offer by covering other destinations, including Southern Italy, as soon as the infrastructure allows it. This is the objective of the transport plan, formally requested from RFI in the form of a framework agreement lasting 15 years. Sncf Voyageurs is present in 9 European countries besides France and a third of its customers are international. It has been present on the Italian market since 1995 with the Artesia service and since 2011 with the Tgv Inoui cross-border service.
