AREP is a multidisciplinary consultancy that is wholly owned by SNCF. It was formed in 1997 by Jean-Marie Duthilleul and Étienne Tricaud, architects and engineers. It has 600 staff from around 15 countries, including town planners, architects, engineers, economists, technicians, designers, and project managers. Raphaël Ménard, its president since 2018, has announced his intention to make AREP the laboratory for ecological design through the EMC2B approach.

The Société nationale des chemins de fer français is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffic along with Monaco, including the TGV, on France's high-speed rail network. Its functions include operation of railway services for passengers and freight, as well as maintenance and signalling of rail infrastructure. The railway network consists of about 35,000 km (22,000 mi) of route, of which 2,600 km (1,600 mi) are high-speed lines and 14,500 km (9,000 mi) electrified. About 14,000 trains are operated daily.