3117, the warning number of this transport, is still too little known

Ile-de-France Region, RATP, SNCF and Ile-de-France Mobilités have launched a communication campaign to remind the public of the existence of this number for victims or witnesses of harassment in transport.

The school director who protected the female victim of attempted rape on RER C on October 15 received the Île-de-France medal on Wednesday, November 19 for his courage. At the same time, a communications campaign started on Monday in the Paris region to remind the public that victims or witnesses of attacks on transport can call 3117, a number that is still too little known to those concerned.

At Chatelet – Les Halles, the largest underground station in the world, thousands of passengers pass through and among them are women victims of gender-based and sexual violence. “Several times it happened to me that people followed me, that people masturbated in front of me… It happened to me when I was 16 years old, no one said anything to him”testimony for example Camille, 19 years old.

Karine is 48 years old and has been faced with “rubbing” on the subway. “I screamed and asked him to stop rubbing my body like that. I was shaking and stressed. After that, I waited for my colleagues to go home…”confide in this transportation user. These attacks have a major impact on the women who adapt their behavior. “Most of the time I prefer traveling with men, and now I prefer cars even more”Camille’s testimony.

Meanwhile, for those who have never been faced with this, remain alert, as explained by Eva and Tania, two students. “I feel calmer when I’m with women. So like it or not, I will get in the car with a woman.”explained Eva. “I saw a petition was passed to make carriages reserved for women, I didn’t sign it but maybe we need to protect women while men educate themselves. But I don’t think that will solve the problem either.”Eva thought.

One way to protect yourself is to call 3117, the SNCF number associated with transportation safety. Numbers were displayed almost everywhere, also shouted over the station’s loudspeakers, but none of the women interviewed were aware of them. “I don’t know at all”they all answered. That’s why the communication campaign was launched “democratize and publicize this service, which remains underutilized”shows Mobilité Ile-de-France.

To find out more about this number, visit the national rail safety center located at Gare du Nord in Paris. Here, SNCF train security agents manage calls to 3117 and also SMS to 31 177, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. About 100 An average of 000 warnings are given each year across France, including 20,000 in the Paris region. In total, 5% were related to sexist and sexual violence, and this figure is quite low. Many calls made to 3117, in fact, have nothing to do with their original purpose.

Jérôme handles hundreds of calls every day, many of which are non-essential, such as calls regarding requests for train timetable information. But other calls are sometimes decisive. “Last September, a woman called because she was on RER B in front of someone who started masturbating in front of her, Jérôme’s story. Completely shocked, he immediately called 3117.”

“We managed to find the victim so we were able to contact the command post with the team that received the train upon arrival at Gare du Nord. The perpetrator was successfully arrested.”

The man was eventually detained and the victim filed a complaint. Proof that this figure can really help women victims of sexual and gender-based violence in the transportation sector. This violence has also increased by 86% in nearly ten years, according to a study conducted by the National Observatory of Violence Against Women.