• Since 2020, other rail companies, like for example Renfe and Trenitalia, are eligible to run services on domestic high-speed routes, thanks to Open access contracts (SLO)
• The French State, acting as the mobility organizing authority (AOM) now puts contracts out to bid for regional trains (TET) — short- to medium-distance routes operated by SNCF Voyageurs under the INTERCITÉS brand
• As mobility authorities (AOM) for regional express lines (TER), regional governments are launching calls for tender. They are required to open these lines to competitive bidding no later than 1 January 2034.
• Special conditions apply to the Transilien commuter lines in the Paris region, for which Île-de-France Mobilités acts as the mobility organizing authority, and which will open to competition gradually through 2039.
• SNCF Voyageurs is creating a dedicated subsidiary to operate services in each market it wins.
• New operators may now run trains on lines that were once reserved for national carriers: for example, trains operated by our Keolis subsidiary, specialized in shared mobility, now serve passengers at railway stations in the United Kingdom. In Spain, SNCF Voyageurs has been operating high-speed trains since 2021 through its company OUIGO España.

Key dates for the opening up to competition: 

• 2006: Rail freight opens to competition within the European Union.
• 2019: TER service opens up to competition.
• 2020: Open-access competition begins for high-speed transport providers and for classic transport providers
• 2021: Trenitalia puts the 1^st Frecciarossa 1000 train into commercial operation
• 2023: Calls for tenders become mandatory for any new operating contract covering conventional lines (TER and INTERCITÉS).
• 2033: All existing agreements must end by year-end 2033 at the latest. After that date, every line must be operated by a company selected through a competitive bidding process.
• 2039: All Transilien commuter lines will have open up to competition.