SNCF is deeply in debt. French Train Travel is very affordable with OuiGo, TER Fares are also quite cheap with discount cards, and for young people TGV Max (79€/Month for unlimited Travel including High Speed) is also a great option. Unfortunately the 4th rail package of the EU will destroy all State Railway Operators forcing to tender out all services starting 2030 This will also lead to cuts of "unprofitable Routes" and generally lead to shitty service as the cheapest always wins. If you want an example look to German regional services which are all tendered out. Every day they are cancellations because someone became sick and they have no reserves. The same with Trains. Most of them travel with reduced capacity, because not all sets work, some are also cancelled for this reason . I really love the EU but this is some very shitty legislation. The current state where the member states could choose wether they want to liberate their rail market or not is much better