A regional train leaves Berlin station (Hauptbahnhof), November 22, 2023 (AFP/INA FASSBENDER)
Having fallen into disuse during the 2010s, night trains are gradually making a comeback on the European continent, like the reopening of the emblematic Paris-Berlin on Monday, which should mark a new stage in this renaissance.
French and German ministers, directors of Deutsche Bahn, SNCF and the Austrian company ÖBB… the list of officials accredited to attend the departure of the first night train from Berlin station to the French capital attests to the importance of the event, nine years after the interruption of this line.
For the moment, three connections per week are planned with departures on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from Paris and Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from Berlin. The service should become daily from October 2024.
The Deutsche Bahn logo, photographed on the facade of Berlin station (Hauptbahnhof), November 22, 2023 (AFP/INA FASSBENDER)
The line is operated by Deutsche Bahn, SNCF but also the Austrian company ÖBB which supplies the rolling stock, the famous “Nightjet”, old trains bought from Deutsche Bahn and renovated by it.
They offer several options, from a berth to a seat, including a sleeper car with a private room for one, two or three people.
– Less polluting –
In recent years and faced with the craze for modes of transport that emit less CO2 than planes or cars, several European countries, starting with France, have chosen to relaunch night trains.
In 2016, there were only two lines of this type remaining in France: one going from Paris to the Pyrenees – Latour-de-Carol or Portbou via Toulouse – and Albi and the other from Paris to Briançon, in the Alps.
Competition from low-cost flights and high-speed trains had even taken over all international connections between the French capital and its neighboring countries.
In Western Europe, with the exception of Austria, whose national company has continued to invest in this sector due to its strategic geographical position on the continent, night trains have gradually disappeared.
But in 2020, Emmanuel Macron announced his desire to open around ten new lines by 2030, an objective confirmed recently by the Ministry of Transport.
Passengers board the Nightjet Paris-Vienna train on December 13, 2021 at Vienna Central Station (AFP/Archives/JOE KLAMAR)
In 2021, Paris-Nice, Paris-Tarbes-Lourdes and especially Paris-Vienne are back on track. And since Sunday, the Paris-Aurillac has been running again, before the relaunch of the Paris-Berlin on Monday.
– Subsidies –
Fans of “slow travel”, eco-friendly travelers concerned about the carbon impact of their travels: there is no shortage of customers and they continue to grow for a mode of transport that is not devoid of charm.
In France last summer, 215,000 travelers slept on the rails, or 15% more compared to summer 2022.
The SNCF Charentes Périgord technicentre in Périgueux, June 29, 2022 (AFP/Archives/YOHAN BONNET)
The government has invested 100 million euros for the relaunch of the night train: 76 million for the renovation of 93 old Corail cars brought up to date and 24 million for the necessary station installations.
It is even considering purchasing new equipment for national lines from 2025, as Minister for Transport Clément Beaune recalled on Sunday evening from Austerlitz station where he witnessed the departure of the first night train to Aurillac, 20 years after his last trip.
But if the night train benefits from a certain popularity, it remains an unprofitable product for companies.
The French state largely subsidizes the relaunched lines: around 10 million euros per year for the connection to Berlin and between three and four million for that to Aurillac, according to the Ministry of Transport.
This is the only way for companies to offer affordable prices ranging from 29.90 euros for a seated seat, to 92.90 euros for a place in a sleeping car between Paris and Berlin – provided you reserve your seat sufficiently in advance. advance.
This does not scare some private players like the French company Midnight Trains which intends to revive the once popular Paris-Milan-Venice line.
© 2023 AFP
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