French railway company, SNCF, has reported a sparkling series of numbers for its newly-opened TGV Est Europeen services.
One month after opening the new high-speed network that links Paris to eastern France, as well as Switzerland, Germany and Luxembourg, SNCF says that more than a million passengers have now used the system.
Some 100 TGV trains carrying 33,000 passengers ply the route between the French capital and the new routes every day, with an impressive load factor of 88% in standard and 75% in first class.
Extra services are now in place to Reims and Strasbourg using new track, with the latter destination benefiting from a 15% increase in capacity by 5 September this year.
An SNCF statement said: ”We underline that TGV Est Europeen is the first train in the world to run at speeds of 320kmh (198mph) on the 300km of new high speed track between Vaires and Baudrecourt.
”SNCF thanks its customers who have trusted us for their journeys to or starting from eastern France.”