railway companies

The recovery in the rail sector was confirmed in 2024. The latest result was that of Eurostar, which merged with Thalys at the end of 2023 under the aegis of SNCF, which was the majority shareholder in the two European high-speed carriers. The new entity carried 19.5 million passengers last year, an increase of...

The press were invited to Paris this morning to take stock of Trenitalia's three years in France. "We have already carried 3 million passengers, with an increase of 40% per year since 2022. Above all, 98% of customers are satisfied with their journey, from the...

As 2024 draws to a close, the French Transport Regulation Authority (ART) has just published its study of the French rail transport market, based on figures for 2023. In its 8th annual review, the Authority firstly confirms the continuing rise in the number of rail passengers since the end of Covid, with growth of +6%...

We know that Deutsche Bahn is facing enormous difficulties in ensuring the punctuality of its trains. This is confirmed by a recent ranking by Transport & Environment (T&E), which analyses the performance of 27 European rail operators. DB is ranked 23rd out of 27. One piece of good news is the reopening on 14 December of the...

For the first time, the organisation Transport & Environment (T&E) has ranked 27 European rail companies according to a series of criteria including price levels, train punctuality, ease of booking and ticket resale. In the overall ranking, Trenitalia came top, followed by Swiss railways SBB CFF,...

With the new timetable due to come into force on 15 December 2024, Swiss Federal Railways is continuing to adapt its rail services throughout the country on the main national and European lines, as well as on regional services. SBB has made a special effort to help the French-speaking part of the country. For several years now, the cantons have been...

With the renewal of its catering agreement with Gate Gourmet Helvetia until 2030, Lyria has decided to raise its culinary standards by improving the quality of its on-board offer and the creativity of its dishes. More particularly in Business 1st. Two menus have been on offer for a few days now...

François Durovray's speech to the French National Assembly yesterday made quite an impression. The new Minister for Transport in the Barnier government called on the rail companies, Voyages SNCF and its current or future competitors, not to focus solely on the most profitable routes in order to achieve more harmonious regional development. "In...

From 15 December, the Intercity trains running between Brussels and Amsterdam will be replaced by the new Eurocity Direct trains, which are faster because they can travel at speeds of up to 200km/h. This means that the journey will take 2h07 on weekdays and 2h at weekends, a saving of 45 minutes compared with the current service. Punctuated with one departure...

Having failed to obtain authorisation to run to Spain from Paris Gare de Lyon, Renfe has just announced the opening of an AVE train link between Toulouse and Barcelona in the second quarter of 2025. On this route, the Spanish company's high-speed trains will stop at Carcassonne, Perpignan, Figueras and Girona. The trainsets...

With its mid-December timetable change, Deutsche Bahn (DB) will be offering more international train journeys. The range of services is up by 25% compared with 2019. This means more than 330 daily journeys linking Germany directly to twelve neighbouring countries. One of the highlights is the new daily ICE service linking Paris to Berlin via Strasbourg....

Proxima has made a good start on the €1 billion it received from the Antin Infrastructure Partners fund before the summer. For €850 million, the future competitor of the SNCF in the west of France has just ordered 12 Avelia Horizon high-speed trains from Alstom. Delivery is due to start in 2028, which suggests that the trains will be...

The opening up to rail competition is set to accelerate in 2025 with the announcement today that Trenitalia will be offering services as far as Marseille on the Paris-Lyon-Marseille route, which is the busiest and, above all, the most lucrative for SNCF. "We are currently awaiting the final authorisation for services to start in 2025", the company confirmed to us this morning...

At this week's InnoTrans trade fair in Berlin, SNCF Voyageurs and Deutsche Bahn (DB) unveiled their new direct service between Paris and Berlin, operating daily from 16 December. DB will have the privilege of providing the transport thanks to its...

The horizon is brightening for SNCF's business activity. After a slow recovery, marked by a return to pre-Covid traffic levels of 80 %, the company is announcing an increase of 14% in the number of business passengers in the autumn of 2024. This follows double-digit growth in the first few months of the year. "The...

How would you describe Eurostar's new corporate offer? François Le Doze - It came into force on 10 September on all our markets, with the aim of unifying the offer that existed on our two networks - cross-Channel and continental Europe - with simplicity in the contract, at a legal level, in contact with...

Launch of a new corporate programme 10 September sees the launch of our new offer for companies of all sizes. The programme is harmonised across all routes in our new extended network. Depending on annual expenditure, companies can benefit from exclusive advantages such as negotiated fares, individual management and...

By the end of 2024, Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) will be making it possible to plan journeys abroad even more flexibly. In addition to purchases at the ticket office and on SBB's online website, new functions on the app will bring together journey planning, ticket purchase and digital assistance in a single location. These services,...

Bad news: the France-Italy rail link in the Maurienne valley, which was hit by a landslide almost a year ago, has been delayed yet again. Although the line was scheduled to reopen this autumn for passenger and freight traffic, it has now been postponed again until the first half of...

The Grand Ouest is attracting new rail operators. After Le Train, which plans to launch in 2026, another major competitor to the SNCF has today announced its arrival: Proxima. The project is being spearheaded by a number of industry heavyweights, including Rachel Picard, former director of Voyages SNCF, and Timothy Jackson,...