OUIGO, the low-cost subsidiary of French National Railways (SNCF), began selling tickets for its new low-cost locomotive-hauled Ouigo Classic service on March 2, with a two-day offer of 300,000 tickets sold at €5 ahead of the service launch on April 11.

Normal ticket prices will range from €10 to €30 with 60% of the tickets available for less than €19, and child tickets at €5. Bicycles will be charged at €10, or €5 if they are folded up. An extra €5 charge for bulky luggage will be introduced in 2023.

Ouigo, which has only operated high-speed TGV services since its launch in 2013, announced the launch of Ouigo Classic and the rebranding of TGV services as Ouigo Grand in September 2021.

Two train pairs will initially operate from Paris Austerlitz station via Tours or Le Mans to Nantes with a journey time of between 3h 15min and 4h 15min. The frequency will increase to three trains in June. Another daily service will operate from Paris Bercy station via Dijon to Lyon serving 14 stations with a journey time between 4h 45min and 5h 15min, with a second train also to be introduced in June. The trains will stop at stations on the outskirts of Paris including Juvisy, Versailles Chantiers and Melun.

The expansion of Ouigo’s offer is part of SNCF’s strategy to attract 2 billion additional long-distance passengers per year by 2025.  

Trains will comprise specially liveried Corail coaches hauled by class BB 22200 dual-voltage electric locomotives from the SNCF Intercités pool, dating from the 1970s and 80s. These will be operated by SNCF’s newly created Oslo subsidiary, with staff performing a variety of tasks to reduce costs.