French strikes LATEST: Transport services improve but travellers face ongoing misery

The transport strikes in France entered their 29th consecutive day on Thursday - a record for rail strikes in the country. Here's the latest outlook.

READ ALSO: Strikes in France - The crucial dates that will determine what happens next 

In Paris, the automatic Metro lines 1 and 14 were operating as usual. 

For the first time since the strike started nearly all lines were running with limited services during rush hour times, but with several stations closed. Only line 7bis will remain completely shut all day.

• Line 2 -  Two out of three trains were running between 6.30am to 9.30am and one out of four trains from 4.30pm and 7.30pm.
• Three out of four Line 3 trains were running at rush hour times (6.30am to 9.30am and from  4.30pm and 7.30pm)
• Line 4 - Half of usual services were to operate at rush hour times
• As for line 5, traffic was set to be disrupted with one out of four trains running in the morning and evening between the stops Place d'Italie and Oberkampf and Bobigny and Stalingrad in the north in the evening.
• Lines 6 and 7 - one out of three trains were set to run during the evening rush hour.
• Lines 8 and 13 - one out of three trains were to run during the morning and evening rush hour.
• Lines 9 and 10 - 50 percent of services were to operate during rush hour times
• Line 11 was to remain closed all afternoon.
• Line 12 - one out of four trains would run only in the afternoon.

On the RER suburban trains there were fewer services than normal.

Traffic on RER B, which connects Paris to its two airports, was severely disrupted.

On the southern end of the line, one train out of two were running from 6.30am to 9.30am and from 4.30pm to 7.30pm.

Between 9.30am and 4.30pm one out of three trains would be running.

READ ALSO: Defiant French unions vow no surrender in month-long strikes

On the northern end, which leads to the airport Charles de Gaulle, one out of three trains were running, but traffic is interrupted at the Gare du Nord station, meaning passengers had to change trains to head to the airport.

As for the buses on Ile-de-France region, there will be three out of four running all through the day on average. Trams would operate largely as usual. 

There was also a slight improvement in the number of TGVs running, with the SNCF announcing 1 out of 2 TGVs were operating on Thursday.

 

Three out of 10 Transilien trains which serve the Paris region, five out of 10 TERs and one out of two Intercité trains were running on Thursday.

For those travelling on the Eurostar, traffic is nearly back to normal with nine out of 10 trains running.

The mass transportation strikes have been running in France since December 5th. 

As talks between the government and the unions will continue on January 7th, people depending on French public transport can expect continued problems for the coming days.

Unions have vowed to carry on until the government backdowns.

French workers' unions are striking to protest the government’s proposed pension reform, which they fear will make people work longer and for smaller pension pots.

The government says an overhaul of the country’s complex pension system is desperately needed.

On New Year’s Eve, President Emmanuel Macron announce that he would not back down, but continue in his bid to push the reform through.