French railway traffic hit by two-day strike

PARIS - A two-day railway strike affected heavily flows on rails across France, triggering trips cancellations and long delays on Thursday, according to the state-owned railway company SNCF.

The strike form Wednesday evening to Friday night made about 60 percent of France's high-speed TGV trains and only four out of 10 regional express trains TER were expected, affecting mainly travelers in the southeast regions.

The strike also disrupted RER rail network in Ile-de France, prompting long delays and also the cancellation of half of the trains heading to Switzerland and one-third to Italy, the SNCF said.

However, trains linking France to neighboring European countries such as London, Brussels, Amesterdam and Germany were running on normal schedules, it added on its website.

Eight major unions of railway workers launched the strike to protest a restructuring plan at the national rail authority, in fear that the reform may lead to a massive layoff.