PARIS, Jan. 13 (LUCA) -- Four European rail companies, including the French National Railways (SNCF), have pledged to build new cross-border night lines starting in 2021, two of which can serve Paris.
According to Le Figaro, a night's sleep in the car can take you from Paris, France, to Vienne, Austria, or Berlin, Germany, which will become possible with the opening of new cross-border night trains in Europe.
The French national railway company, together with the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB), Deutsche Bahn and the Swiss Federal Railways (CFF), held a press conference in early December 2020 to jointly announce the construction of a new European night train line, the first of which is expected to open in December 2021.
Specifically, two of the new lines that will gradually open for operation in the coming years will pass through Paris:
December 2021: Paris – Munich – Vienna, Austria; Zurich, Switzerland – Cologne – Amsterdam, Netherlands
December 2022: Zurich, Switzerland – Milan, Italy – Rome, Italy
December 2023: Paris - Strasbourg - Berlin, Germany, Berlin - Bruxelles, Belgium
December 2024: Zurich, Switzerland – Barcelona, Spain (Barcelone)
Trains on these new lines will use the Austrian Nightjet brand, a subsidiary of Austrian Federal Railways and a pioneer of night trains in Europe, already operating around 20 night trains across Switzerland, Germany or Italy from its Vienna hub.
In terms of ticket prices for the new line, it should be the same as the current price standard for night-jet trains. Depending on the three different comfort classes, fares are around €30 for the seating area, around €100 for the sleeper area and around €170 for one- to three-person sleeper rooms with showers. Depending on the fare, breakfast, snacks or drinks are also available on board, and bicycles, motorbikes or cars can even be carried on some routes.
If night trains are revived in Europe, it is also an opportunity for France. The French national railway currently operates only two night lines, Briançon and Latour-de-Carol, and plans to resume operations of two lines by 2022, namely Paris-Nice and Paris-Pau-Tarbes, and will also spend 100 million euros to refurbish trains to improve comfort and attract more passengers.