Railway strikes test Macron’s reforms

MAYHEM at railway stations. Gridlock on the roads. The scenes of strife in France this week were as familiar as they were symbolic. On April 3rd train drivers and other rail staff began a rolling strike, planned for two out of every five days, that may last for months. It could be a re-run of the strikes that paralysed the country in 1995, forcing Alain Juppé, Jacques Chirac’s prime minister, to back down in the face of chaos. How President Emmanuel Macron handles the confrontation with unions will determine whether he lives up to his electoral promise to “unblock” France, or joins the long list of French leaders defeated by the revolt of the street.