Here are the new routes planned in the short term and when the first night trips will start.
#THE TRANS-EUROP EXPRESS: the new night trains to go abroad
The European Union rail transport plan foresees to triple high-distance passenger traffic by 2050. The new action plan with the restoration of the TEE service goes in that direction. Here are the new routes planned in the short term and when the first night trips will start.
# The TEE 2.0 network: the new day&night routes planned
At the summit of European transport ministers last May, they signed a letter of intent. This marked the first step for the creation of a European network of day and night fast train services. The name of the program is Trans-Europ-Express 2.0. A reference to the historic network with the TEE acronym which connected post-war European countries.
In this letter, guidelines have been indicated to guarantee a minimum standard for the service. The network must include routes between at least three states, or between two states over a distance of at least 600 km. Trains must travel at a pace of at least 160 km/h on most of the route and at an average one of at least 100 km/h. Services on board must include air conditioning, WiFi and restaurant.
The routes planned in the short term are:
1/2 Paris-Warsaw via Belgium and Germany
3/4 Amsterdam-Rome with stops in Cologne, Basel and Milan
5/6 Berlin-Barcelona via France
7/8 Amsterdam-Barcelona with stops in Belgium and France
A first date has not yet been indicated for day trips, while night trips will restart next year on the already existing routes.
# The first night trips planned with the 2022 winter timetable
Waiting for the first day trips, the 2022 winter timetable is already in force. It includes night connections such as Vienna-Munich-Paris and Vienna-Zurich-Amsterdam. In 2023 both Vienna-Berlin-Brussels and Vienna-Zurich-Barcelona lines should start.
The European Commission wants to facilitate new night connections. So it has planned to study ad hoc measures. By the end of the year the EC will present an action plan to promote long-distance passenger rail services. In fact, the objective of the EU Green Deal remains the same: doubling passenger traffic on long-distance rail by 2030. Then triple it by 2050.
LORENZO ZUCCHI
