Strikes continue in France

By Timo Kirez

GENEVA (AA) - Transport and other sectors continued to be disrupted Friday due to union mobilizations in France.

French railroads SNCF traffic improved but remained slow, with an average of one train in two long-distance TGV, Ouigo and Inoui service, according to the company's website.

Regional TER trains will average only two out of five. In the Paris metropolitan area, local RATP traffic will improve significantly on the metro side. However, traffic will remain severely affected on the Paris RER B urban railroads.

In air transport, the French Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGAC) asked airlines to cancel 20% of flights at Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle airport and 30% of flights at Orly, Nice, Beauvais, Bordeaux, Lyon, Lille, Toulouse, Marseille, Montpellier, and Nantes airports on Thursday and Friday.

Other sectors were also mobilized by the unions. On Thursday, Europe's largest waste incinerator in Ivry-sur-Seine was at a standstill. And in several cities in the country, such as Saint-Brieuc, as reported by the daily Ouest-France, garbage collectors decided to extend their strike before new AGs on Friday.

In many cities, garbage is starting to pile up. In some Paris districts, restaurant owners are even having to adapt in order not to scare away their customers.

In addition to protests against the pension reform, rallies by climate activists from the group Friday for Future will also be held across the country on Friday.

Demonstrations are planned in several French cities. In Paris, the demonstration procession will move from the Opera in the IX arrondissement to the Place de la Bastille.