Transport express régional

Transport express régional (French pronunciation: [tʁɑ̃spɔʁ ɛksprɛs ʁeʒjɔnal], usually shortened to TER) is the brand name used by the SNCF, the French national railway company, to denote rail service run by the regional councils of France, specifically their organised transport authorities.

The network serves French regions; Île-de-France (Transilien) and Corsica (CFC) have their own specific transport systems.

Since the end of the 1990s, it has been closely coordinated with the regional councils, who sign an agreement with SNCF on the designated routes, the number of connections, the fares and the service levels.

TER trains consist of single or multiple-unit diesel, electric or dual-mode rail cars, as well as some Corail carriages previously used on intercity routes.

A few other regions are in turn signing on conventions interimédiaires in order to prepare for the increasing decentralization of the network: in particular, Haute-Normandie in September 1997, Midi-Pyrénées and Burgundy November 1997, Picardy in January 1998, and Lorraine in February 1998.