The French rail operator SNCF announced on Sunday that repairs to its network have been “fully completed” and there would be no further delays for travellers to the Paris Olympics from Monday.
Saboteurs launched a co-ordinated attack on various points of the route, causing chaos for those heading to the opening ceremony. Three out of four of France’s primary high-speed train lines were damaged by fire and the attacks impacted around 800,000 passengers.
In a statement issued on Sunday, SNCF said the western line from Paris was “practically normal,” with three out of four high-speed trains running on the main northern line from the capital “without any increase in travel time from now on.”
“Thanks to the exceptional mobilisation of our agents who have worked tirelessly since Friday morning, the repair work is now completely finished on all the high-speed lines affected by the acts of sabotage,” SNCF added.
Eurostar expects to operate around 80 per cent of its scheduled trains on Sunday, while services will return to normal by Monday. “The situation is improving and should be back to normal on Monday, however short-notice delays may still occur,” it said.
“Eurostar’s teams are fully mobilised in stations, in the call centres, and onboard to assist and ensure our passengers are fully informed.”
The identity of the attackers is still unknown amid an ongoing police investigation.
Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete said on Saturday security on the network had been bulked up, with 50 surveillance drones and some police helicopters deployed.
Speaking on the French TV network TF1, interior minister Gerald Darmanin said: “We have gathered a number of elements that make us think we could know fairly quickly who is responsible for what has obviously not sabotaged the Olympic Games, but rather pat of the holidays of the French.”