Overview
- Traffic on the Sud-Est high-speed axis returned largely to normal Tuesday morning after repair teams replaced 16 damaged cables over about 25 meters, according to SNCF Réseau.
- Around 4 a.m. Monday, a deliberate fire destroyed signaling and communication cables south of Valence, and a separate catenary cable theft near Bollène limited capacity on the conventional diversion route.
- About a hundred TGVs were canceled or heavily delayed, affecting roughly 50,000 passengers during the Toussaint holiday period, while the Paris–Lyon line was not impacted.
- The investigation has been taken over by the Grenoble research section of the gendarmerie, which is assessing ties to fires at a nearby quarry and reviewing an anonymous text posted on Indymedia that alludes to the incidents.
- SNCF Voyageurs, Trenitalia and Renfe services were affected, and authorities have pledged reimbursements for impacted travelers as they consider additional protections for critical rail infrastructure.