Four European rail operators – France’s SNCF, Germany’s Deutsche Bahn, Switzerland’s SBB/CFF and Austria’s ÖBB – have announced plans for new overnight train services that will connect 13 key cities by the end of 2024.
The first of the new Nightjet services will launch in December 2021 and link Vienna, Munich and Paris as well as Zurich, Cologne and Amsterdam. In December 2023, a new night service connecting Vienna, Berlin, Brussels and Paris will begin, while a year later Zurich will get an overnight service to Barcelona.
The announcement was made on the fringes of a summit in Berlin of Europe’s transport ministers to mark the European Year of Rail in 2021.
French transport minister Jean-Baptiste Djebbari said: “We all share the conviction that night trains have a real future in Europe. They offer an ecological and sustainable alternative and will sustain the interest of citizens in rail.”
Richard Lutz, Deutsche Bahn CEO, said: “The major rail companies of Europe are uniting for night rail. It is a great day for the climate, our clients and for the development of European rail.”
Leonore Gewessler, Austrian minister for climate protection, said, “Night trains are the future for climate-friendly travel in Europe.”
The news comes at a time when there is a long-term trend towards more use of rail in business travel.