French high-speed trains to become non-smokers

PARIS, May 26 (AFP) – The French rail company said Wednesday it was banning smoking from all high-speed trains from mid-December, forcing smokers wishing to take such trains to kick the habit for the duration of their trip.

“From December, all TGVs (high-speed trains) will be entirely non-smoking,” said Mireille Faugere, head of the SCNF’s France Europe travel service, noting that the move would coincide with the start of the winter service.

She explained that the decision was made based on a decrease in the number of smokers, greater sensitivity to smoking by TGV passengers and a growing use of non-smoking areas.

“In the face of this phenomenon, we cannot be left behind,” she noted.

On December 15, 2002, the French state railways had already banned smoking in all first-class sections of high-speed trains. Last December the ban was extended to all TGV trains serving France’s western regions.

Between 600 and 650 TGVs operate in France daily, Faugere said.

On inter-European rail routes, the high-speed Eurostar running between Paris and London is already non-smoking. The Thalys, which operates between Amsterdam and Cologne via Brussels to Paris, will follow suit on June 13 and the Lyria high-speed train, running between Switzerland and France, will be smoke-free in December.

© AFP

Subject: French news