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Paris: Worst train and Metro lines for delays are named

The Local France
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Paris: Worst train and Metro lines for delays are named
Photo: AFP

Commuters in the French capital take note. A new ranking has been released that reveals the worst train and Metro lines in Paris for delays.

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Commuters in Paris have heard all the announcements before.

Strikes, suspect packages, power outages, train breakdowns, people on the tracks… the reasons for delays to services on the Paris transport network are varied and the announcements are frequent.

But which lines are the most affected?

A new ranking released by transport authorities in the greater Paris region has revealed all.

First for the RER (often dubbed the REAAARRRRGGGGHHHH! by frustrated foreigners) the stats show that between January and June 2017, the RER D was the worst service for delays.

Even if punctuality had improved on the line that runs from the towns of Melun and Malesherbes to the south west of Paris through the centre of the city to Creil, just north of the capital, it is still bottom of the table.

Only 85.2 percent of RER D trains arrived on time during rush hour, the stats put together by transport authority Île-de-France Mobilites reveal.

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Just above RER D stood the notorious RER A, said to be Europe’s busiest train line.

RER A trains, which run from west to east through the centre of the city, are only on time 85.3 percent of the time.

RER A, the centre section of which closes each summer much to the dismay of commuters, is badly affected by alerts for suspect packages, which have doubled in the last year.

Trains are held most of the time while the bomb squad are called in to investigate.

In third place on the list of the least punctual train lines in the Paris region is RER C, which runs from the north west of the region to the south west through the centre of the city.

RER C services are on time 86.4 percent of the time, but that’s in fact a drop of three percentage points on the same period in 2016.

Authorities say this was partly due to speed limits imposed in June due to severe heat wave.

Then comes everyone’s seemingly least favourite train line, the RER B, which runs from north to south and links the centre of Paris to the city’s two main airports Charles-de-Gaulle and Orly.

The punctuality record of the RER B (86.7 percent) has also dropped since 2016.

Authorities blame the construction works for the Grand Paris Express, which has meant speed limits being imposed on the line.

And what about the Metro?

Well compared to the RER lines, the Metro can be proud of its service.

Some 95 percent of trains run on time with the automatic lines 1 and 14 the best performers. They have a punctuality rate of 100 percent.

Line 5, which runs from Place d’Italie to Bobigny through the east of the city is not far behind.

At the bottom of the ranking comes line 6, which links Charles de Gaulle Etoile and Nation through the southern half of Paris, then the notorious line 13.

Commuters seem to hate Line 13, not just because of the delays, but also the fact it is always overcrowded. However it is on the up, with punctuality rates improving.

Here's how we think public transport in Paris could be improved

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