On 17 May Germany’s Ministry of for Transport and Digital Infrastructure held its Schienengipfel (Rail Summit) in Berlin. The centre piece of the event was a renewed commitment to speeding up Berlin – Dresden – Prague – Vienna connections, but an eagle-eyed Josh Posaner of Politico spotted an interesting paragraph in […]
European Union
French Ministry of the Ecological Transition report on night trains – focus on both French and international routes
The Ministère de la Transition écologique (Ministry of the Ecological Transition) in France has released a new report entitled ÉTUDE DU DÉVELOPPEMENT DE NOUVELLES LIGNES DE TRAINS D’ÉQUILIBRE DU TERRITOIRE (TET) (STUDY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW TERRITORY BALANCE TRAIN LINES (TET)) – this assesses the way train connections in […]
Detailed night train research from Oui au train de nuit
The French campaign group Oui au train de nuit has produced some of the most detailed research about the opportunities for night trains – understandably with the focus on routes within France, and between France and its neighbours. Its first report from January 2020 (PDF here) sets the scene. There […]
EIB electric buses funding model the way forward to finance night train stock?
In January 2021, the European Investment Bank and Banque des Territoires launched a Clean Buses Platform – a mechanism through which public transport operators in France have access to up to €100 million to procure electric buses. A similar mechanism might be the way to allow rolling stock leasing companies […]
Bloomberg publishes new interactive website about night trains in Europe
Entitled “Europe Asks Travelers to Ditch Planes for Night Trains“, Bloomberg has published a sort of interactive guide to night trains in Europe, and what the European Union is trying to do to solve the night train conundrum. It’s not all quite right in the technical detail, but it sure […]
Germanwatch report on European trains travel
Berlin-based NGO Germanwatch has published a new report about train travel in Europe, in German – you can read the report here. The focus is heavily on what Germany should do, with an eye on the 26th September Bundestag election. The report has 6 key messages: 1. Develop a “Europatakt” […]