SNCF Connect: the launch of the application was “too brutal”

The SNCF Connect application, recently available, has many problems and various bugs. Christophe Fanichet, the boss of SNCF Voyageurs, acknowledged that the launch was “too harsh” and users have turned to customer service in droves.

A bad start for SNCF Connect

“Its operation seemed too complicated for users, some lost their bearings. We have probably underestimated this phenomenon.said Christophe Fanichet in an interview with Parisian. “The launch of SNCF Connect was too abrupt, I regret that. The transition should have been more gradual”.

Launched at the end of January, SNCF Connect merges oui.sncf (the commercial site) and L’Assistant SNCF (the information application, mainly oriented towards local travel). “The operation of SNCF Connect will be optimal by the end of March”promised the boss of SNCF Voyageurs. “We have 200 people on deck to fix bugs and add missing features”he specified.

2% of purchases made required contact with customer service, four times more than usual, and the number of support staff has been increased by 30%. Users were especially unable to find their tickets reserved before the commissioning of the application. “But the seven million tickets concerned have been transferred, none have been lost (…) This subject is behind us”assured the boss of SNCF Voyageurs.

There were also unreadable QR Codes when arriving at the gate, and the default brightness was increased. Other travelers were unable to dematerialize their discount card. “We couldn’t plan for everything. We carried out tests on 9,000 people, it is necessarily different with 66 million French people “defends the leader. “There is a buzz, but you have to be indulgent and make allowances”. But he assures us: “the launch of SNCF Connect is not a failure”. According to his words, “We sold 10 million tickets in three weeks, we have 2.5 million daily visitors and the app has been downloaded 800,000 times”.