High-speed rail in Europe
Encyclopedia
High-speed rail is emerging in Europe as an increasingly popular and efficient means of transport. The first high-speed rail
lines in Europe, built in the 1980s and 1990s, improved travel times on intra-national corridors. Since then, several countries have built extensive high-speed networks, and there are now several cross-border high-speed rail links. Railway operators frequently run international services, and tracks are continuously being built and upgraded to international standards on the emerging European high-speed rail network. In 2007, a consortium of European railway operators, Railteam
, emerged to coordinate and boost cross-border high-speed rail travel. Developing a Trans-European high-speed rail network
is a stated goal of the European Union
, and most cross-border railway lines receive EU funding. Today only the core countries of Western Europe are 'plugged in' to a cross-border high-speed railway network. This will change rapidly in the coming years as Europe invests heavily in tunnels, bridges and other infrastructure and development projects across the continent.
is one of a number of the European Union
's Trans-European transport networks
. It was defined by the Council Directive 96/48/EC of 23 July 1996.
The aim of this EU Directive is to achieve the interoperability
of the European high-speed train network at the various stages of its design, construction and operation.
The network is defined as a system consisting of a set of infrastructures, fixed installations, logistic equipment and rolling stock.
On 5 June 2010, the European Commissioner for Transport
signed a Memorandum of Understanding
with France and Spain concerning a new high speed rail line across the Pyrenees
to become the first link between the high speed lines of the two countries. Furthermore, high speed lines between Helsinki and Berlin (Rail Baltica
), and between Lyon and Budapest (map), were promoted.
trains currently running on the line travel with speeds of up to 200 km/h. Austrian locomotive-hauled trains operating at 200 km/h (called railjet
) were launched in 2008. ÖBB
is planning to increase the operational speed to 230 km/h some time after 2013.
The 56 km (35 mi) Brenner Base Tunnel
currently under construction will allow speeds of up to 250 km/h. The Unterinntalbahn, the line connecting the Brenner Base Tunnel to Southern Germany, is also being upgraded from two tracks to four tracks and maximum design speeds of 250 km/h.
The Koralmbahn, the first entirely new railway line in the Second Austrian Republic is under construction since 2006. It includes a new 33 km tunnel (Koralmtunnel) connecting the cities of Klagenfurt
and Graz
. Primarily built for intermodal freight transport, it will also be used by passenger trains travelling up to 250 km/h. The travel time from Klagenfurt to Graz will be reduced from three hours to one hour. The Koralmbahn is expected to be operational by 2020.
Belgium's rail network is served by four high-speed train operators: Thalys
, Eurostar
, ICE
and TGV
trains. All of them serve Brussels South station, Belgium's largest train station. Thalys trains operate between Belgium, Germany (Cologne
), the Netherlands (Amsterdam
) and France (Paris). Thalys trains are a variant of the French TGV. Since 2007 Eurostar has connected Brussels to London St Pancras
. Before that date trains connected to London Waterloo
. The German ICE
operates between Brussels, Liège
and Frankfurt
Hbf
.
The HSL 1
is a Belgian high speed railway line which connects Brussels with the French border. 88 km long (71 km dedicated high-speed tracks, 17 km modernised lines), it began service on 14 December 1997. The line has appreciably shortened rail journeys, the journey from Paris to Brussels now taking 1:22. In combination with the LGV Nord
, it has also impacted international journeys to France and London, ensuring high-speed through-running by Eurostar, TGV, Thalys PBA and Thalys PBKA trainsets. The total construction cost was €1.42 billion.
The HSL 2
is a Belgian high-speed rail line between Brussels and Liège
, 95 km long (61 km dedicated high-speed tracks between Leuven
and Ans
, 34 km modernised lines between Brussels and Leuven and between Ans and Liège) it began service on 15 December 2002. Its extension to the German border (the HSL 3
) is now in use, the combined eastward high speed line greatly accelerates journeys between Brussels, Paris and Germany. HSL 2 is currently used by Thalys and ICE
trains as well as fast internal InterCity
services.
The HSL 3
is a Belgian high-speed railway line which connects Liège to the German border. 56 km long (42 km dedicated high-speed tracks, 14 km modernised lines), it began service on 13 December 2009. HSL 3 is used by international Thalys and ICE trains only, as opposed to HSL 2 which is also used for fast internal InterCity services.
The HSL 4
is a Belgian high-speed railway line which connects Brussels to the Dutch border. 87 km long (40 km dedicated high speed tracks, 57 km modernised lines). HSL 4 is used by Thalys trains since 13 December 2009 and it will be used starting 2010 by fast internal InterCity trains. Between Brussels and Antwerp (47 km), trains travel at 160 km/h on the upgraded existing line (with the exception of a few segments where a speed limit of 120 km/h is imposed). At the E19/A12 motorway junction, trains leave the regular line to run on new dedicated high-speed tracks to the Dutch border (40 km) at 300 km/h.
The completion of the Channel Tunnel rail link (High Speed 1) and the completion of the lines from Brussels to Amsterdam and Cologne led to news reports in November 2007 that both Eurostar and Deutsche Bahn
were pursuing direct services from London to Amsterdam and Cologne. Both trips would be under 4 hours, the length generally considered competitive with air travel.
to Svilengrad
is being reconstructed for speeds from 120 and 200 km/h, the line will serve passenger and freight traffic, which is expected to grow heavy after the completion of the Bosphorus tunnel.
In 2010 there will be tenders for lines from the capital Sofia
to Plovdiv and further to the seaport of Burgas
. Other lines, that are targeted for modernization are these in the northwestern part. A high-speed train line will be built, connecting Sofia and Vidin
through Botevgrad
. The trains will develop speeds of between 160 and 200 km/h. The line is expected to be complete by 2017 at a cost of 3 billion euro.
–Rijeka
line, with an initial maximum planned speed of 200 km/h. The cost of the new line is estimated at 9,244,200,000 kuna (approx. 1.6 bil USD). The project will include the modernisation of the current Botovo-Zagreb-Josipdol
line and a construction of a completely new line between Josipdol and Rijeka.
Also, the Pan-European Corridor X, running from the Slovenian border, through Zagreb, to Serbian border is a likely future candidate for the high-speed extension to this line. It is currently the most modern Croatian track, already initially built for 160 km/h and fully electrified and connects most branch lines in Croatia, rapidly growing Croatian cities of Slavonski Brod
and Vinkovci
, and Pan-European Corridor Vc towards Osijek
and Bosnia and Herzegovina
.
to Vienna
and Bratislava
since 2005. The Pendolino
is capable of operating at 230 km/h. However in-service trains are limited to 160 km/h due to the speeds the railways were constructed to meet. These limits will be raised in future (see Czech rail records
).
The Czech Ministry of Transportation is planning a cca 660 km long high-speed rail network. Several studies have been completed, but proper variant of the network has not been definitely chosen. There are no expectations for any operation before 2020.
and Øresund Bridge have made overland transportation between Germany and Sweden possible. A Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link has been approved, and upon completion in 2018, will shorten rail journeys between Hamburg
and Copenhagen
to 3.5 hours or less.
The main lines in Denmark allow 180 km/h at many places, for example most of the route Copenhagen–Århus (map). Some parts will be upgraded to 200 km/h. Currently the fastest trains reach 180 km/h (2011). Currently, three train types, the diesel powered DSB IC4
and the German railways
ICE-TD
, and the electrical SJ
X2000
can reach 200 km/h but are not running at that speed for now in Denmark.
It is not likely that any train will run above 200 km/h in Denmark for many years. Denmark's two biggest cities, Copenhagen and Aarhus, are about 300 km apart; 200 km/h is enough to reach two hour travel time, which has been set as a goal for the future. The mainlines are usually too curvy for higher speeds, which would be possible on short stretches only. New railway lines are not planned in Denmark, except for a new 60 km long line Copenhagen–Ringsted
, which will allow at least 200 km/h when finished. The railway line towards the future Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link was upgraded to 160 km/h in 2010, and will possibly be partially upgraded to 200 km/h around year 2018, not faster than that, as the Copenhagen–Hamburg route is mostly too curvy and will be mixed with heavy freight traffic and continue to rely on two single-track bridges; the Danish Storstrøm Bridge
and the German Fehmarn Sound Bridge
.
The signalling system is unique for Denmark, and contains numerous obsolete components, which must be replaced. Denmark has decided to replace the signalling system with a new one, the ERTMS, to be finished before 2020. That is a requirement for speeds higher than 200 km/h.
Denmark uses diesel trains for long-distance passenger trains and plans to continue with that, even though delays with the custom-built IC4
might encourage a shift to electric trains. A key obstacle for the introduction of electric trains is the lack of an electric overhead supply on the Ålborg–Århus–Fredericia rail track. An additional obstacle to the introduction of high-speed rail in western Denmark is that two stretches of rail track between Kolding
and the Danish-German border are single-track lines only.
operates tilting Alstom
Pendolino
trains. The trains reach their maximum speed of 220 km/h in regular operation on a 60 kilometre route between Kerava
and Lahti
. This portion of track was opened in 2006. The trains can run at 200 km/h on a longer route between Helsinki
and Seinäjoki
and peak at that speed between Helsinki and Turku
. The main railway line between Helsinki and Oulu
is currently being upgraded between Seinäjoki
and Oulu
to allow for trains to run at speeds between 160 and 200 km/h. Other parts of the Finnish railway network are limited to lower speed.
A new service called Allegro
started between Helsinki and St. Petersburg, Russia in December 2010 with a journey time of 3½ hours. It utilizes a new Pendolino model, supporting both Finnish and Russian standards. Four new trains have been delivered, with a top speed of 220 km/h.
Between 2007 and 2010 the Russian line from the Finnish border to St. Peterburg was electrified and improved to allow higher running speeds. The Finnish line (Riihimäki – Saint Petersburg Railway) was also upgraded where needed, mostly to 200 km/h.
Europe was introduced to high speed rail when the LGV Sud-Est
from Paris to Lyon
opened in 1981 and TGV
started passenger service. Since then, France has continued to build an extensive network, with lines extending in every direction from Paris. France has the second longest high-speed network in Europe, with 1897 km (as of December 2010) of operative HSR lines, only behind Spain's 2,665 km.
The TGV network gradually spread out to other cities, and into other countries such as Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and the UK. Due to the early adoption of high-speed rail and the central location of France in Western Europe, most other dedicated high-speed rail lines in Europe have been built to the same speed, voltage and signalling standards. The most obvious exception is the high-speed lines in Germany, which are built to existing German train line standards. Also, many high-speed services, including TGV and ICE utilize existing rail lines in addition to those designed for high speed rail. For that reason, and due to differing national standards, trains that cross national boundaries need to have special characteristics, such as the ability to handle different power supplies and signalling
systems. This means that not all TGVs are the same, and there are loading gauge
and signalling considerations.
The construction of the Channel Tunnel
, completed in 1994, provided the impetus for the first cross-border high speed rail line. In 1993, the LGV Nord, which connects Paris to the Belgian border and the Channel Tunnel via Lille was opened. Initial travel times through the tunnel from London to Paris and Brussels were about 3 hours. In 1997, a dedicated high-speed line to Brussels, HSL 1
was opened. In 2007, High Speed 1, the Channel Tunnel Rail Link to London was completed after a partial opening in 2003. All three lines were built to the French LGV standards, including electrification at 25 kV.
Passenger trains built to specific safety standards are operated by Eurostar
through the Channel Tunnel. Direct trains now travel from London St. Pancras to Paris in 2h15, and to Brussels in 1h51. Thalys
high-speed international trains service the Paris to Brussels corridor, which is now covered in 1h20. Additional Thalys services extend to Amsterdam and Cologne in addition to Belgian cities.
Construction on first German high-speed lines began shortly after that of the French LGVs. Legal battles caused significant delays, so that the InterCityExpress
(ICE) trains were deployed ten years after the TGV network was established. The ICE network is more tightly integrated with pre-existing lines and trains as a result of the different settlement structure in Germany, with a population more numerous by a third than that of France, on a territory smaller by a third, resulting in more than twice the population density of France. ICE trains reached destinations in Austria and Switzerland soon after they entered service, taking advantage of the same voltage used in these countries. Starting in 2000, multisystem third-generation ICE trains entered the Netherlands and Belgium. The third generation of the ICE reached a speed of 363 km/h (226 mph) during trial runs, and is certified for 330 km/h (205 mph) in regular service.
Admission of ICE trains onto French LGVs was applied for in 2001, and trial runs were completed in 2005. In June 2007, the LGV Est
from Paris to the middle of the Lorraine region
of France was opened. For the first time, high speed services over the Franco-German border were offered. SNCF
operates the TGV service between Paris and Stuttgart
via Strasbourg
and a daily round trip from Paris to Frankfurt
via Saarbrücken
, while ICE trains operate the remaining Paris to Frankfurt.
In the southwest, a new line between Karlsruhe
and Basel
is under construction to allow speeds of 250 km/h (155 mph), and a new line between Frankfurt and Mannheim for speeds of 300 km/h (186 mph) is in advanced planning stages. In the east, a 230 km (142.9 mi) long line between Nuremberg
and Leipzig
is under construction for speeds of up to 300 km/h (186 mph). Together with the fast lines from Berlin to Leipzig and from Nuremberg to Munich, which were built recently, it will allow travel times of just about 4 hours from Berlin in the north to Munich
in the south, compared to nearly 8 hours for the same distance just a few years ago.
, Athens
and Thessaloniki
is being replaced with a higher speed double track standard gauge with modern signalling. Some parts are built new and other parts are being upgraded. The 520 km line will have a maximum operational speed of 200 km/h, reducing travel time from five and a half to three and a half hours. Some parts of the line are capable of speeds in excess of 250 km/h (the new part at Tempe valley which is ready since 2003 and the new part of the line from Tithorea
to Leianokladi
at Kallidromo
(not finished yet), however the mountainous geography of Greece limits turn radii significantly, thus resulting in the 200 km/h classification. The line between Thessaloniki, Idomeni and the border with the Republic of Macedonia
is also being upgraded. The line between Thessaloniki, Promachonas
and the Bulgarian border is scheduled to be upgraded in the near future.
(Irish Rail) has recently bought new Mark4 Coaches from CAF
of Spain, which have a design speed of 200 km/h (125 mph). However, they are currently operated with 10 year old Class 201
locomotives with a maximum speed of 160 km/h (100 mph). Iarnród Éireann plan to purchase powercars and upgrade the route to 200 km/h (125 mph) standard. On the Dublin to Belfast
line, IÉ are considering the following options for after 2020 (when the life of the existing De Dietrich Ferroviaire
coaches will have expired):
The earliest high-speed train deployed in Europe was the Italian "Direttissima", the Florence–Rome high-speed railway (254 km/158 mi) in 1978, which used FS Class E444
3 kV DC locomotives. Italy pioneered the use of the Pendolino
tilting train technology. Italian government constructor Treno Alta Velocità
has been adding to the high speed network in Italy, with some lines already opened. The Italian operator NTV
plans to be the first open access high speed rail operator in Europe, by 2011, using AGV
multiple units.
International links between Italy and France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia are underway. These links all incorporate extensive new tunnelling under the Alps
. European Union funding has already been approved for the Lyon Turin Ferroviaire
, which will connect the TGV and TAV networks, and for a link with Slovenia. In Slovenia
, Pendolino-based trainsets are operated by Slovenian Railways as the InterCitySlovenija
. Trains connect the capital Ljubljana
with Maribor
and also with Koper in summer months. One unit operated as EC Casanova on the line Ljubljana
–Venice
, but this service was discontinued in April 2008.
The Brenner Base Tunnel
through Austria and Italy is also proposed.
HSL-Zuid
is a 125 km high-speed line in the Netherlands. Using existing tracks from Amsterdam Centraal
to Schiphol Airport, the dedicated high-speed line begins here and continues to Rotterdam Centraal and to the Belgian border. Here, it connects to the HSL 4
, terminating at Antwerpen-Centraal. Den Haag Centraal
(The Hague
) and Breda
are connected to the high-speed line by conventional railway lines. Services on the HSL-Zuid began on 7 September 2009. It will be served by Thalys
trains from Amsterdam to Brussels
and Paris, and Fyra
trains serving all HSL-Zuid stations between Amsterdam Centraal and Brussel-Zuid/Bruxelles-Midi.
HSL-Oost
was planned, but put on hiatus. It would connect Amsterdam Centraal via Utrecht Centraal
and Arnhem
to Germany.
Currently, Norway's only high speed line is the 64 km Gardermobanen (The Gardermoen Railway), which links Oslo Airport
(OSL) with the metropolitan areas of Oslo
. Here the Flytoget (the Airport Express Train) and some of the NSB (Norwegian State Railways) trains operate at speeds of up to 210 km/h (130 mph). Gardermobanen contributes to give rail transport a relatively high market share. Almost 38 % of the OSL passengers come by train, about 21 % by bus, and about 40 % by car.
Some more new high-speed lines are planned to be built in the Oslo region, during the 2010 and 2020 decades. Today, however, only small parts of Norway's rail network do permit speed faster than 130 km/h.
There is a political climate for building more high speed railway services in Norway, including long-distance lines from Oslo to Trondheim
, Bergen
, Stavanger
and Gothenburg
. They are assumed to be dedicated single-track high speed railways having up to 250 km/h (155 mph). This is still at the feasibility planning stages.
Today, the main cities of Poland are linked by railway transport reaching 160 km/h. Several sections of the Central Trunk Line are able to allow speeds of 200 km/h (with a current speed record in Poland of 250 km/h) however Polish Railways don't possess the rolling stock to achieve this speed. Polish Railways
planned to buy Pendolino trains in 1998, but the contract was cancelled the following year by the Supreme Control Chamber due to financial losses by Polish Railways.
Current plans call for a "Y" line that will connect Warsaw
–Łódź–Kalisz
, with branches to Wrocław and Poznań
. The geometric layout of the line will be designed to permit speeds of 360 km/h. Construction is planned to begin around 2014 and finish in 2019. In the center of the city of Łódź the "Y" line will travel through an underground tunnel which would link two existing railway stations. One of them, Łódź Fabryczna, would be reconstructed as an underground station (reconstruction scheduled to start July 2010). In April 2009, 4 companies qualified for the 2nd phase of a public tender to prepare a feasibility study for construction of the line.
In April 2010, the tender for a feasibility study was awarded to a consortium led by Spanish company Ingenieria IDOM.
The feasibility study project has been granted €80 million in subsidy from European Union
. The total cost of the line including construction and train sets has been estimated at €6.9bn and is planned to be financed partially by EU subsidies.
There are also many plans to upgrade existing lines. The Warsaw - Kraków/Katowice line could be upgraded to 250 km/h by 2012 along with Warsaw - Gdańsk line, where reconstruction has already started (the latter being upgraded to allow speeds of 200 km/h)
The "Y" line links will possibly be extended to Berlin from Poznań and Prague
from Wrocław, most probably by upgrading existing lines.
The Portuguese government has approved the construction of six high-speed lines from the capital Lisbon
to Porto
, from Porto (Oporto) to Vigo
, from Aveiro to Salamanca
, from Lisbon to Faro
, from Faro to Seville
and from Lisbon to Madrid
, Spain, bringing the two countries' capital cities within three hours of each other. Since the late 1990s, the Italian tilting train, the Pendolino
runs the Alfa Pendular
service, connecting Portugal's mainland from the north border to the Algarve (southern counterpart) at a speed of up to 220 km/h (135 mph).
On the 8th of May, 2010, The Portuguese Transport Minister signed off the 40-year PPP covering the construction of the Lisbon-Madrid highspeed line. The total cost has been put at 1.359€bn, for a double track standard gauge line from Lisbon to the Spanish border. Also included is a broad gauge line from the Portuguese port of Sines to the Spanish border. The line is expected to open by the end of 2013 and will reduce the journey time between Lisbon and Madrid to 2hr 45min.
. The RT-200 set made only experimental runs in 1975 and 1980 and was discontinued due to unavailability of the ChS-200 high-speed locomotive- they were only delivered later. The ER-200 EMU
was put into regular service in 1984. In 1992 a second ER-200 trainset was built in Riga. Both sets are still in operation today. As of Feb 2010 fatigue cracks had developed in the wheelsets of all the trainsets and a decision is being made whether or not to temporarily discontinue operation.
In addition to these domestic trainsets, imported trainsets have been in operation since 2009. Siemens Velaro
trainsets have operated since 2009 between St Petersburg and Moscow, at speeds of up to 250 km/h (155 mph) and since 2010 between Nizhny Novgorod
and Moscow, where service is limited to 160 km/h (99 mph). The Pendolino Sm6, similar to Finnish high speed trains, began operation in 2010 between St.Petersburg and Finland at up to 200 km/h (124 mph).
In February, 2010, RZhD announced it would shortly release a proposal for a new high-speed line to be built parallel to the existing line between St. Petersburg and Moscow due to congestion on the existing line. In April, 2010, it was confirmed that the new Moscow-St.Petersburg high-speed line was envisioned to be a 400 km/h running speed cutting the journey time from 3h 45m to 2h 30m.
On Jan 28th 2011, Russia announced that a high speed 400 km/h rail link would be built between Moscow and St Petersburg in time for the 2018 Fifa World Cup. The state will shoulder up to 70 percent of construction costs, with the remainder coming from outside investors. Most of that money is likely to come from international financial institutions, including the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, said Denis Muratov, general director of High-Speed Rail Lines. Sberbank, VTB and VEB may also be interested.
The Moscow to St. Petersburg line is expected to cost "somewhere around" 10 billion to 15 billion euros, not including land purchases, Muratov said.
The Alta Velocidad Española (AVE
) high-speed rail system in Spain has been in service since 1992, when the Madrid
–Sevilla (Seville) route started running. Six other lines have been opened since, including 621 km long Madrid
–Barcelona
. The recently completed Madrid-Valencia line brings the total length of the network up to 2.665 km, making it the longest in Europe, and the second in the world after China. Should the aims of the ambitious AVE construction program be met, by 2020 Spain will have connected almost all provincial capitals to Madrid in less than 3 hours and Barcelona
within 6 hours with high-speed trains. The Spanish and Portuguese high speed lines are being built to European standard or UIC track gauge of and electrified with 25 kV at 50 Hertz from overhead wire
. The first HSL from Madrid to Seville is equipped with LZB train control system, later lines with ETCS.
Elsewhere in Europe, the success of high speed services has been due in part to interoperability with existing normal rail lines. Interoperability between the new AVE lines and the older Iberian gauge
network presents additional challenges. Both Talgo
and CAF
supply trains with interchangeable gauges and automatic gauge changer equipment which the trains pass without stopping. Some lines are being equipped with a third rail allowing trains with Iberian and UIC gauge to run on the same tracks. Other lines are equipped with sleepers for both Iberian and UIC gauge, where the track can be converted from Iberian to UIC gauge at a later time without changing the sleepers.
The first AVE line to link up with the French standard gauge network is the LGV Perpignan-Figueres
, which opened on 19 December 2010, and includes a new 8.3 kilometres (5.2 mi) tunnel under the Pyrenees
. This line, along with the AVE lines from Figueres
to Barcelona and Madrid, should be operational by 2012. Upon completion, trains will be able to operate between the French and Spanish capitals without break of gauge for the first time. Other links, including one at Irun
/Hendaye
are also planned.
Currently several new HSR lines are under construction with design speed of 300–350 km/h, as well several old lines are being upgraded to allow passenger trains to operate at 250 km/h.
Three corporations have built or will build trains for the Spanish high-speed rail network: Spanish Talgo
, French Alstom
and German Siemens AG
. Bombardier Transportation
is a partner in both the Talgo-led and the Siemens-led consortium. Because France has yet to electrify its rail lines at the TGV voltage of 25 kV all the way to the Spanish border, initial connections between the two countries will require special train sets, such are already in use between Paris and Amsterdam.
tilting trains, widebody and double-decker regional trains, and the Arlanda Airport Express X3. Since both the X2 and X3 are allowed to run at 205 in case of delay, they can technically be considered as high-speed trains. The X2 runs between many cities in Sweden including Stockholm
, Gothenburg
, Malmö
. The Arlanda Express
trains connect Stockholm and Stockholm-Arlanda Airport
.
Parts of the network can be relatively easily upgraded to 250 km/h. This requires new signalling system, catenary, removal of level crossings and new trains. There are plans to upgrade specific railways to allow this speed. They have been delayed to after 2015. A number of upgrades from single to double track or new railway have been built since 1990. They have been built with curves capable for 250 km/h (some requiring tilting trains for that). However neither the signalling system, nor the trains allow more than 205 km/h before at least 2010. The Botniabanan
is ready and allowed for 250 km/h trains in 2010, but no such trains will run there for the first years, partly because the manufacturers have no experience of this in such cold climate. A research project ("Gröna tåget") aims to get experience of it, to make such trains available before 2015. SJ plans to order such trains, in traffic in 2014.
There are plans for a long completely new high-speed railway for 250–320 km/h, Stockholm
–Linköping
–Jönköping
–Borås
–Gothenburg
, since the existing railways are relatively congested. An informal date suggestion by the Banverket is operation by year 2030. For two parts (Södertälje
–Linköping
and Mölnlycke
–Bollebygd
) detailed planning is done, and they are expected to have construction start by around 2017 (opposed by the minister of finance
) and be in operation by around 2025.
(TGV Lyria
) and German ICE
lines extend into Switzerland, but given the dense rail traffic, short distances between Swiss cities and the often difficult terrain, they currently do not attain speeds higher than 200 km/h (ICE3) or 160 km/h (TGV, ICE1, ICE2) there. The fastest Swiss trains are the ICN tilting trains, operated by the Swiss Federal Railways
since May 2000. They can reach higher speeds than conventional trains on the curve-intensive Swiss network, however the top speed of 200 km/h can only be reached on high-speed lines. The former Cisalpino
consortium owned by the Swiss Federal Railways and Trenitalia
used Pendolino
tilting trains on two of its international lines. These trains are now operated by the Swiss Federal Railways and Trenitalia.
To address transalpine freight and passenger bottlenecks on its roads and railways, Switzerland launched the Rail2000 and AlpTransit
projects. The first stage of the Rail2000 project finished in 2005, included a new high-speed rail track between Bern and Olten
with an operating speed of 200 km/h. AlpTransit project is building faster north-south rail tracks across the Swiss Alps by constructing base tunnels several hundred metres below the level of the current tunnels. The 35 km Lötschberg Base Tunnel
opened in 2007 where New Pendolino
trains run at 250 km/h. The 57 km Gotthard Base Tunnel
(Top speed 250 km/h) is scheduled to open in 2015. The second stage of Rail2000 includes line upgrades in canton Valais
(200 km/h) and between Biel and Solothurn
(200 km/h). The start of work is planned for 2012–2016. However, the slow speed of lines between the Alptransit tunnels (Ceneri, Gotthard Base and Zimmerberg to name but a few) means that the capacity of Zürich-Milan services will remain limited until the speeds can be increased, given the strong negative effect of mixed rail speeds on capacity.
Turkey started building high-speed rail lines in 2003 aiming a double track high speed rail network through the country allowing a maximum speed of 250 km/h. Only the planned line between İstanbul
, Edirne
and Kapıkule
is situated in the European part of the country.
The first line that was built aimed to connect İstanbul to Ankara
(via Eskişehir
) reducing the travel time from 6 – 7 hours to 3 hours 10 minutes. The Eskişehir-Ankara line has started operating regular services on March 14, 2009 with a maximum speed of 250 km/h, being the first High Speed Rail Service in Turkey making the Turkish State Railways
the 6th European national rail company to offer HSR services (although these are situated in the Asian part of the country). The Eskişehir-İstanbul line is still under construction and is due 2013.
The Ankara - Konya
line construction began in 2006. The travel time is projected to be decreased to 70 minutes on this route. The construction of the Ankara - Kırıkkale
- Yozgat
- Sivas line began in February 2009. Several other HSR line projects between major cities such as Ankara - Afyon - Uşak
- İzmir
, İstanbul - Bursa
, İstanbul - Edirne
- Kapıkule
(Bulgarian border) have reached their final design and are expected to pass to the contraction phase soon. Ankara - Kayseri
and Eskişehir
- Afyon - Antalya
lines are planned to be built in the coming years. The Konya
- Mersin
- Adana
and Sivas - Erzincan
- Erzurum
- Kars
lines were mentioned by the prime minister and the minister of transport.
The first 12 high speed trainsets are ordered from CAF
company, Spain. Further sets are expected to be provided by EUROTEM
, which is a joint enterprise between Korean ROTEM
and Turkish TÜVASAŞ
, situated in Adapazarı
, Sakarya
.
( standard gauge line between Polish border and L'viv has been closed and dismantled since early 1990s.)
The United Kingdom's first dedicated high-speed line, High Speed 1 between London and the Channel Tunnel, opened 14 November 2007. A second line, dubbed High Speed 2
, has been proposed between London and Birmingham
with the possibility of extensions to Manchester
and Leeds
. Like Finnish/Russian counterparts, the strongest reasons for new high speed lines are to relieve congestion on the existing network.
The Eurostar
trains, which run through the Channel Tunnel
between the UK and both France and Belgium, are substantially different versions of the TGV trains, with support for four voltages, of them two present in the UK, both pantograph
and third-rail
power collection (although the third-rail shoe-gear has now been removed following the opening of High-Speed 1), the ability to adapt to multiple platform heights, and to cope with no fewer than seven different signalling
modes. Like the TGVs, Eurostar trains are articulated with bogies between the carriages, and most units have 18 passenger carriages and two power cars (the end passenger carriages also have their outer bogies powered). A fully loaded train of 750 passengers is roughly equivalent to five Boeing 737s (the aircraft typically used by low-cost airlines). These trains operate at the highest scheduled speeds of any in the UK, using a high-speed line between the Channel Tunnel and St Pancras station
in London (High Speed 1) which was fully opened in November 2007.
The remainder of Britain's railway network is considerably slower. No trains run faster than 200 km/h (125 mph) using routes largely established in the middle years of the nineteenth century. A major reason for this limit is the lack of in-cab signalling
, which has been deemed necessary by safety authorities for higher speeds. The speed limit on some sections of the East Coast Main Line
was experimentally raised to 140 mi/h during the upgrade and electrification of the route during the 1980s (both the Pendolino
s used on the West Coast Main Line
and the Intercity 225
s used on the East Coast Main Line are capable of 140 mph) using flashing green signals to indicate the line ahead was clear for this speed. The line speed was later restored to 125 mi/h, and the flashing green system is no longer in use.
An attempt was made in the 1970s and 1980s to introduce a high-speed train that could operate on Britain's winding infrastructure - British Rail
developed the Advanced Passenger Train
using active tilting technology. After four prototypes had been built and tested, the project was closed down when Margaret Thatcher
and British Railways management lost confidence in the technology. The tilting action on demonstration runs induced a feeling akin to seasickness in the passengers, leading to the train being nicknamed the 'vomit comet', and the prototypes were expensive to operate and unreliable. However, the problems were near to a solution, and ultimately the technology was a success. British Rail sold it to an Italian firm, which fixed the problems. Trains based on the older technology have been in service in Italy for several years. In 2004, following a large investment in the West Coast Main Line
, tilting Pendolino
s, based on the Italian trains, were introduced. These trains are currently limited to a top speed of 125 mi/h although they were designed to run faster—cost over-runs on the track and signalling refurbishment project led to the line being rebuilt with the lower speed limit rather than the 140 mi/h originally planned, this is also true of the Intercity 225 used on the east coast main line which also has a design speed of 140 mph (225 km/h). The Pendolinos are operated by Virgin Trains
, on services from London Euston
to Birmingham
, Edinburgh
, Glasgow
, Liverpool
, Wolverhampton
, and Manchester
(with occasional services to Holyhead
although for the foreseeable future these will continue to be hauled by diesel locomotives west of Crewe due to the lack of overhead line equipment).
, several proposals for domestic British high speed lines have been put forward and the government is considering building a north-south line. For more information, see High-speed rail in the United Kingdom
.
line from Tallinn
to Warsaw via Riga
and Kaunas
is planned, but will probably not be a purpose-built high-speed line, but be an upgrade of the existing line. Amongst various proposals, the Rail Baltica's line speed could vary from 120 km/h to 250 km/h, as no final decision has been made. For cost reasons an upgrade is the most likely decision. Some upgrade has already started.
and Bucharest
which would be a part of a larger transportation corridor Paris-Vienna-Budapest-Bucharest-Constanţa
. There is no clear schedule for the project yet, but feasibility studies, ecological impact studies and right-of-way land purchase should not begin before 2009. The link will be designed to support speeds up to 300 km/h, but no technical details have been made public as of March 2008.
At the moment railway from Bucharest
to Constanța
support speeds up 160 km/h.
High-speed rail
High-speed rail is a type of passenger rail transport that operates significantly faster than the normal speed of rail traffic. Specific definitions by the European Union include for upgraded track and or faster for new track, whilst in the United States, the U.S...
lines in Europe, built in the 1980s and 1990s, improved travel times on intra-national corridors. Since then, several countries have built extensive high-speed networks, and there are now several cross-border high-speed rail links. Railway operators frequently run international services, and tracks are continuously being built and upgraded to international standards on the emerging European high-speed rail network. In 2007, a consortium of European railway operators, Railteam
Railteam
Railteam is an alliance of seven European high-speed rail operators. The aim of the group is to offer integrated high-speed rail travel between major European cities and to compete with airlines on punctuality, environment, pricing and speed. Coordinated departures are intended to give consistent...
, emerged to coordinate and boost cross-border high-speed rail travel. Developing a Trans-European high-speed rail network
Trans-European high-speed rail network
The Trans-European high-speed rail network , together with the Trans-European conventional rail network, make up the Trans-European Rail network, which in turn is one of a number of the European Union's Trans-European transport networks...
is a stated goal of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, and most cross-border railway lines receive EU funding. Today only the core countries of Western Europe are 'plugged in' to a cross-border high-speed railway network. This will change rapidly in the coming years as Europe invests heavily in tunnels, bridges and other infrastructure and development projects across the continent.
Integration of European High-speed rail network
The Trans-European high-speed rail networkTrans-European high-speed rail network
The Trans-European high-speed rail network , together with the Trans-European conventional rail network, make up the Trans-European Rail network, which in turn is one of a number of the European Union's Trans-European transport networks...
is one of a number of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
's Trans-European transport networks
Trans-European Transport Networks
The Trans-European Transport Networks are a planned set of road, rail, air and water transport networks designed to serve the entire continent of Europe. The TEN-T networks are part of a wider system of Trans-European Networks , including a telecommunications network and a proposed energy network...
. It was defined by the Council Directive 96/48/EC of 23 July 1996.
The aim of this EU Directive is to achieve the interoperability
Interoperability
Interoperability is a property referring to the ability of diverse systems and organizations to work together . The term is often used in a technical systems engineering sense, or alternatively in a broad sense, taking into account social, political, and organizational factors that impact system to...
of the European high-speed train network at the various stages of its design, construction and operation.
The network is defined as a system consisting of a set of infrastructures, fixed installations, logistic equipment and rolling stock.
On 5 June 2010, the European Commissioner for Transport
European Commissioner for Transport
The Commissioner for Transport is the member of the European Commission. The current commissioner is Siim Kallas.The portfolio is responsible for the development of transport infastructure in the European Union such as road and rail networks but also navigation systems such as the Galileo...
signed a Memorandum of Understanding
Memorandum of understanding
A memorandum of understanding is a document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action. It is often used in cases where parties either do not imply a legal commitment or in...
with France and Spain concerning a new high speed rail line across the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
to become the first link between the high speed lines of the two countries. Furthermore, high speed lines between Helsinki and Berlin (Rail Baltica
Rail Baltica
thumb|300px|Map of Rail Baltica...
), and between Lyon and Budapest (map), were promoted.
Austria
The West railway is being upgraded. The new sections have a continuous maximum design speed of 250 km/h. Due to technical restrictions, the German ICEInterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
trains currently running on the line travel with speeds of up to 200 km/h. Austrian locomotive-hauled trains operating at 200 km/h (called railjet
Railjet
The Railjet is a high speed train of the Austrian Federal Railways , which was introduced with the timetable change of 2008–2009 and operates at speeds of up to , with a planned increase to by 2013...
) were launched in 2008. ÖBB
ÖBB
The Austrian Federal Railways is the national railway system of Austria, and the administrators of Liechtenstein's railways...
is planning to increase the operational speed to 230 km/h some time after 2013.
The 56 km (35 mi) Brenner Base Tunnel
Brenner Base Tunnel
The Brenner Base Tunnel is a planned long railway tunnel through the base of the Brenner massif. It will run from Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof in Austria to Franzensfeste in Italy, replacing part of the current Brenner railway...
currently under construction will allow speeds of up to 250 km/h. The Unterinntalbahn, the line connecting the Brenner Base Tunnel to Southern Germany, is also being upgraded from two tracks to four tracks and maximum design speeds of 250 km/h.
The Koralmbahn, the first entirely new railway line in the Second Austrian Republic is under construction since 2006. It includes a new 33 km tunnel (Koralmtunnel) connecting the cities of Klagenfurt
Klagenfurt
-Name:Carinthia's eminent linguists Primus Lessiak and Eberhard Kranzmayer assumed that the city's name, which literally translates as "ford of lament" or "ford of complaints", had something to do with the superstitious thought that fateful fairies or demons tend to live around treacherous waters...
and Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
. Primarily built for intermodal freight transport, it will also be used by passenger trains travelling up to 250 km/h. The travel time from Klagenfurt to Graz will be reduced from three hours to one hour. The Koralmbahn is expected to be operational by 2020.
Belgium
Thalys
Thalys is an international high-speed train operator originally built around the high-speed line between Paris and Brussels. This track is shared with Eurostar trains that go from Paris or Brussels to London via Lille and the Channel Tunnel and with French domestic TGV trains. Thalys reaches...
, Eurostar
Eurostar
Eurostar is a high-speed railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains traverse the Channel Tunnel between England and France, owned and operated separately by Eurotunnel....
, ICE
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
and TGV
TGV
The TGV is France's high-speed rail service, currently operated by SNCF Voyages, the long-distance rail branch of SNCF, the French national rail operator....
trains. All of them serve Brussels South station, Belgium's largest train station. Thalys trains operate between Belgium, Germany (Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
), the Netherlands (Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
) and France (Paris). Thalys trains are a variant of the French TGV. Since 2007 Eurostar has connected Brussels to London St Pancras
St Pancras railway station
St Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
. Before that date trains connected to London Waterloo
Waterloo station
Waterloo station, also known as London Waterloo, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. The station is owned and operated by Network Rail and is close to the South Bank of the River Thames, and in Travelcard Zone 1....
. The German ICE
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
operates between Brussels, Liège
Liège
Liège is a major city and municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège, of which it is the economic capital, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium....
and Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
Hbf
Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof
is the central station for Frankfurt am Main. In terms of railway traffic, it is the busiest railway station in Germany. With about 350,000 passengers per day the station is the second most frequented railway station in Germany and one of the most frequented in Europe.- Proto-history :In the late...
.
The HSL 1
HSL 1
The HSL 1 is a Belgian high speed rail line which connects Brussels with LGV Nord at the border with France. It is long with 71 km of dedicated high-speed tracks and 17 km of modernised lines. Service began on 14 December 1997....
is a Belgian high speed railway line which connects Brussels with the French border. 88 km long (71 km dedicated high-speed tracks, 17 km modernised lines), it began service on 14 December 1997. The line has appreciably shortened rail journeys, the journey from Paris to Brussels now taking 1:22. In combination with the LGV Nord
LGV Nord
The LGV Nord is a French 333-kilometre long high speed rail line, opened in 1993, that connects Paris to the Belgian border and the Channel Tunnel via Lille....
, it has also impacted international journeys to France and London, ensuring high-speed through-running by Eurostar, TGV, Thalys PBA and Thalys PBKA trainsets. The total construction cost was €1.42 billion.
The HSL 2
HSL 2
The HSL 2 is a Belgian high-speed rail line between Leuven and Ans. long, all of it dedicated high-speed tracks, it began service on 15 December 2002. As a part of the Belgian railway network, its formal owner is the Railway Infrastructure Fund...
is a Belgian high-speed rail line between Brussels and Liège
Liège
Liège is a major city and municipality of Belgium located in the province of Liège, of which it is the economic capital, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium....
, 95 km long (61 km dedicated high-speed tracks between Leuven
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
and Ans
Ans
Ans is a small Belgian municipality located in the Walloon province of Liège. On January 1, 2006 Ans had a total population of 27,322. The total area is 23.35 km² which gives a population density of 1,170 inhabitants per km²...
, 34 km modernised lines between Brussels and Leuven and between Ans and Liège) it began service on 15 December 2002. Its extension to the German border (the HSL 3
HSL 3
The HSL 3 is a Belgian high-speed rail line. It connects Liège to the German border near Aachen. The line is long, of which are dedicated high-speed tracks....
) is now in use, the combined eastward high speed line greatly accelerates journeys between Brussels, Paris and Germany. HSL 2 is currently used by Thalys and ICE
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
trains as well as fast internal InterCity
InterCity
InterCity is the classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe...
services.
The HSL 3
HSL 3
The HSL 3 is a Belgian high-speed rail line. It connects Liège to the German border near Aachen. The line is long, of which are dedicated high-speed tracks....
is a Belgian high-speed railway line which connects Liège to the German border. 56 km long (42 km dedicated high-speed tracks, 14 km modernised lines), it began service on 13 December 2009. HSL 3 is used by international Thalys and ICE trains only, as opposed to HSL 2 which is also used for fast internal InterCity services.
The HSL 4
HSL 4
The HSL 4 is a Belgian high-speed rail line which connects Brussels to the Dutch border. 87 km long , it was scheduled for completion by 2007.Together with the HSL 1 to the French border and HSL-Zuid to Amsterdam, the line has shortened journeys between Brussels,...
is a Belgian high-speed railway line which connects Brussels to the Dutch border. 87 km long (40 km dedicated high speed tracks, 57 km modernised lines). HSL 4 is used by Thalys trains since 13 December 2009 and it will be used starting 2010 by fast internal InterCity trains. Between Brussels and Antwerp (47 km), trains travel at 160 km/h on the upgraded existing line (with the exception of a few segments where a speed limit of 120 km/h is imposed). At the E19/A12 motorway junction, trains leave the regular line to run on new dedicated high-speed tracks to the Dutch border (40 km) at 300 km/h.
The completion of the Channel Tunnel rail link (High Speed 1) and the completion of the lines from Brussels to Amsterdam and Cologne led to news reports in November 2007 that both Eurostar and Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn AG is the German national railway company, a private joint stock company . Headquartered in Berlin, it came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany...
were pursuing direct services from London to Amsterdam and Cologne. Both trips would be under 4 hours, the length generally considered competitive with air travel.
Bulgaria
As part of a railway modernisation campaign there are numerous projects some in construction phase and others in planning. Currently the line from PlovdivPlovdiv
Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...
to Svilengrad
Svilengrad
Svilengrad is a town in Haskovo Province, South-central Bulgaria, situated at the border of Turkey and Greece. It is the administrative centre of the homonymous Svilengrad Municipality. As of December 2009, the town has a population of 18,132 inhabitants....
is being reconstructed for speeds from 120 and 200 km/h, the line will serve passenger and freight traffic, which is expected to grow heavy after the completion of the Bosphorus tunnel.
In 2010 there will be tenders for lines from the capital Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
to Plovdiv and further to the seaport of Burgas
Burgas
-History:During the rule of the Ancient Romans, near Burgas, Debeltum was established as a military colony for veterans by Vespasian. In the Middle Ages, a small fortress called Pyrgos was erected where Burgas is today and was most probably used as a watchtower...
. Other lines, that are targeted for modernization are these in the northwestern part. A high-speed train line will be built, connecting Sofia and Vidin
Vidin
Vidin is a port town on the southern bank of the Danube in northwestern Bulgaria. It is close to the borders with Serbia and Romania, and is also the administrative centre of Vidin Province, as well as of the Metropolitan of Vidin...
through Botevgrad
Botevgrad
Botevgrad ; pre-1866: Samundzhievo ), is a town in western Bulgaria. It is located in Sofia Province and is close to Pravets. Botevgrad is situated at a 47-km-distance from Sofia.-Geography:...
. The trains will develop speeds of between 160 and 200 km/h. The line is expected to be complete by 2017 at a cost of 3 billion euro.
Croatia
With the highway construction programme in its final stages, the Croatian parliament has passed a bill to build its first high-speed line, a new Botovo–ZagrebZagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
–Rijeka
Rijeka
Rijeka is the principal seaport and the third largest city in Croatia . It is located on Kvarner Bay, an inlet of the Adriatic Sea and has a population of 128,735 inhabitants...
line, with an initial maximum planned speed of 200 km/h. The cost of the new line is estimated at 9,244,200,000 kuna (approx. 1.6 bil USD). The project will include the modernisation of the current Botovo-Zagreb-Josipdol
Josipdol
Josipdol is a village and municipality in Karlovac County, Croatia. The municipality is part of Lika.-Geography:Josipdol is situated in the Ogulin-Plaški valley which together with Lika and Gorski Kotar forms Mountainous Croatia. The town is located at the crossroads of state roads D-23, which...
line and a construction of a completely new line between Josipdol and Rijeka.
Also, the Pan-European Corridor X, running from the Slovenian border, through Zagreb, to Serbian border is a likely future candidate for the high-speed extension to this line. It is currently the most modern Croatian track, already initially built for 160 km/h and fully electrified and connects most branch lines in Croatia, rapidly growing Croatian cities of Slavonski Brod
Slavonski Brod
Slavonski Brod is a city in Croatia, with a population of 59,507 in 2011. The city was known as Marsonia in the Roman Empire, and as Brod na Savi 1244–1934. It is the sixth largest city in Croatia, after Zagreb, Split, Rijeka, Osijek and Zadar. Located in the region of Slavonia, it is the...
and Vinkovci
Vinkovci
Vinkovci is a city in Croatia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County. In the 2011 census, the total population of the city was 35,375, making it the largest town of the county...
, and Pan-European Corridor Vc towards Osijek
Osijek
Osijek is the fourth largest city in Croatia with a population of 83,496 in 2011. It is the largest city and the economic and cultural centre of the eastern Croatian region of Slavonia, as well as the administrative centre of Osijek-Baranja county...
and Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
.
Czech Republic
The ČD Railway has been running the Super City Pendolino from PraguePrague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
and Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
since 2005. The Pendolino
Pendolino
Pendolino is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Switzerland, China and shortly in Romania and Poland...
is capable of operating at 230 km/h. However in-service trains are limited to 160 km/h due to the speeds the railways were constructed to meet. These limits will be raised in future (see Czech rail records
Czech rail records
Czech rail records, dates in brackets indicate when the record was reached or when the railway infrastructure was put into operation.First horse-drawn railway...
).
The Czech Ministry of Transportation is planning a cca 660 km long high-speed rail network. Several studies have been completed, but proper variant of the network has not been definitely chosen. There are no expectations for any operation before 2020.
Denmark
Large-scale bridge projects in Denmark have made fast rail links between Scandinavia and Germany a real possibility. The completed Great Belt Fixed LinkGreat Belt Fixed Link
The Great Belt Fixed Link is the fixed link between the Danish islands of Zealand and Funen across the Great Belt. It consists of a road suspension bridge and railway tunnel between Zealand and the island Sprogø, as well as a box girder bridge between Sprogø and Funen...
and Øresund Bridge have made overland transportation between Germany and Sweden possible. A Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link has been approved, and upon completion in 2018, will shorten rail journeys between Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
and Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
to 3.5 hours or less.
The main lines in Denmark allow 180 km/h at many places, for example most of the route Copenhagen–Århus (map). Some parts will be upgraded to 200 km/h. Currently the fastest trains reach 180 km/h (2011). Currently, three train types, the diesel powered DSB IC4
IC4
The IC4 is an inter-city train built by Italian AnsaldoBreda for the trans-Great Belt routes of Danske Statsbaner , Denmark's national railway operator. Under DSB's ‘Good trains for everyone’ plan , the intent of the IC4 project was to replace several types of outdated rolling stock...
and the German railways
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn AG is the German national railway company, a private joint stock company . Headquartered in Berlin, it came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany...
ICE-TD
Siemens Venturio
Siemens Venturio is a concept intercity and interregional train from Siemens.The Venturio concept is intended for top speeds between 160 km/h and 250 km/h, train lengths of 3-9 cars, and optional active tilting...
, and the electrical SJ
SJ AB
SJ is a government-owned passenger train operator in Sweden. SJ was created in 2000, out of the public transport division of Statens Järnvägar, when the former government agency was divided into six separate government-owned limited companies.-Overview:SJ's operations fall broadly into subsidised...
X2000
X2000
X2000 is a 1998 short film directed by François Ozon.-Plot:A naked man wakes up in a luxury loft, which is a residential building in an unidentified European city, after a particularly wild New Year's Eve party of the year 2000. He finds a naked woman in his bed, and obviously he does not...
can reach 200 km/h but are not running at that speed for now in Denmark.
It is not likely that any train will run above 200 km/h in Denmark for many years. Denmark's two biggest cities, Copenhagen and Aarhus, are about 300 km apart; 200 km/h is enough to reach two hour travel time, which has been set as a goal for the future. The mainlines are usually too curvy for higher speeds, which would be possible on short stretches only. New railway lines are not planned in Denmark, except for a new 60 km long line Copenhagen–Ringsted
Ringsted
Ringsted, a city in Ringsted municipality, is in the middle of the Danish island of Zealand. The municipal population is about 31,000 and the city population is 21,151 .Ringsted is approximately 60 km from Copenhagen.-Modern hotspot:...
, which will allow at least 200 km/h when finished. The railway line towards the future Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link was upgraded to 160 km/h in 2010, and will possibly be partially upgraded to 200 km/h around year 2018, not faster than that, as the Copenhagen–Hamburg route is mostly too curvy and will be mixed with heavy freight traffic and continue to rely on two single-track bridges; the Danish Storstrøm Bridge
Storstrøm Bridge
Storstrøm Bridge is a road and railway arch bridge that crosses Storstrømmen between the islands of Falster and Masnedø in Denmark....
and the German Fehmarn Sound Bridge
Fehmarn Sound bridge
The Fehmarn Sound Bridge connects the German island of Fehmarn in the Baltic Sea with the German mainland near Großenbrode.-Description:The long road and rail suspended deck arch bridge together with associated earthworks crosses the wide Fehmarn Sound. Construction began in 1958 and the bridge...
.
The signalling system is unique for Denmark, and contains numerous obsolete components, which must be replaced. Denmark has decided to replace the signalling system with a new one, the ERTMS, to be finished before 2020. That is a requirement for speeds higher than 200 km/h.
Denmark uses diesel trains for long-distance passenger trains and plans to continue with that, even though delays with the custom-built IC4
IC4
The IC4 is an inter-city train built by Italian AnsaldoBreda for the trans-Great Belt routes of Danske Statsbaner , Denmark's national railway operator. Under DSB's ‘Good trains for everyone’ plan , the intent of the IC4 project was to replace several types of outdated rolling stock...
might encourage a shift to electric trains. A key obstacle for the introduction of electric trains is the lack of an electric overhead supply on the Ålborg–Århus–Fredericia rail track. An additional obstacle to the introduction of high-speed rail in western Denmark is that two stretches of rail track between Kolding
Kolding
Kolding is a Danish seaport located at the head of Kolding Fjord in Region of Southern Denmark . It is the site of the council Kolding Municipality. It is a transportation, commercial, and manufacturing centre, and has numerous industrial companies, principally geared towards shipbuilding...
and the Danish-German border are single-track lines only.
Finland
In Finland the national railway company VRVR Group
VR or VR Group is a state-owned railway company in Finland. Formerly known as Suomen Valtion Rautatiet until 1922 and Valtionrautatiet / Statsjärnvägarna until 1995...
operates tilting Alstom
Alstom
Alstom is a large multinational conglomerate which holds interests in the power generation and transport markets. According to the company website, in the years 2010-2011 Alstom had annual sales of over €20.9 billion, and employed more than 85,000 people in 70 countries. Alstom's headquarters are...
Pendolino
Pendolino
Pendolino is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Switzerland, China and shortly in Romania and Poland...
trains. The trains reach their maximum speed of 220 km/h in regular operation on a 60 kilometre route between Kerava
Kerava
Kerava is a town and municipality in Finland.It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Uusimaa region. The town has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...
and Lahti
Lahti
Lahti is a city and municipality in Finland.Lahti is the capital of the Päijänne Tavastia region. It is situated on a bay at the southern end of lake Vesijärvi about north-east of the capital Helsinki...
. This portion of track was opened in 2006. The trains can run at 200 km/h on a longer route between Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
and Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki is a city located in Southern Ostrobothnia, Finland. Seinäjoki originated around the Östermyra bruk iron and gunpowder factories founded in 1798. Seinäjoki became a municipality in 1868, market town in 1931 and town in 1960...
and peak at that speed between Helsinki and Turku
Turku
Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
. The main railway line between Helsinki and Oulu
Oulu
Oulu is a city and municipality of inhabitants in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the sixth most populous city in the country. It is one of the northernmost larger cities in the world....
is currently being upgraded between Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki is a city located in Southern Ostrobothnia, Finland. Seinäjoki originated around the Östermyra bruk iron and gunpowder factories founded in 1798. Seinäjoki became a municipality in 1868, market town in 1931 and town in 1960...
and Oulu
Oulu
Oulu is a city and municipality of inhabitants in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the sixth most populous city in the country. It is one of the northernmost larger cities in the world....
to allow for trains to run at speeds between 160 and 200 km/h. Other parts of the Finnish railway network are limited to lower speed.
A new service called Allegro
VR Class Sm6
The Sm6 Allegro is a high-speed train which runs between Helsinki, Finland, and St. Petersburg, Russia. The service started on 12 December 2010...
started between Helsinki and St. Petersburg, Russia in December 2010 with a journey time of 3½ hours. It utilizes a new Pendolino model, supporting both Finnish and Russian standards. Four new trains have been delivered, with a top speed of 220 km/h.
Between 2007 and 2010 the Russian line from the Finnish border to St. Peterburg was electrified and improved to allow higher running speeds. The Finnish line (Riihimäki – Saint Petersburg Railway) was also upgraded where needed, mostly to 200 km/h.
France
Europe was introduced to high speed rail when the LGV Sud-Est
LGV Sud-Est
The LGV Sud-Est is a high-speed rail line, which links Paris' and Lyon's suburbs, in France. The inauguration of the first section between Saint-Florentin and Sathonay on 22 September 1981 marked the beginning of the re-invigoration of French passenger rail service.This line, subsequently...
from Paris to Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
opened in 1981 and TGV
TGV
The TGV is France's high-speed rail service, currently operated by SNCF Voyages, the long-distance rail branch of SNCF, the French national rail operator....
started passenger service. Since then, France has continued to build an extensive network, with lines extending in every direction from Paris. France has the second longest high-speed network in Europe, with 1897 km (as of December 2010) of operative HSR lines, only behind Spain's 2,665 km.
The TGV network gradually spread out to other cities, and into other countries such as Switzerland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and the UK. Due to the early adoption of high-speed rail and the central location of France in Western Europe, most other dedicated high-speed rail lines in Europe have been built to the same speed, voltage and signalling standards. The most obvious exception is the high-speed lines in Germany, which are built to existing German train line standards. Also, many high-speed services, including TGV and ICE utilize existing rail lines in addition to those designed for high speed rail. For that reason, and due to differing national standards, trains that cross national boundaries need to have special characteristics, such as the ability to handle different power supplies and signalling
Railway signal
A signal is a mechanical or electrical device erected beside a railway line to pass information relating to the state of the line ahead to train/engine drivers. The driver interprets the signal's indication and acts accordingly...
systems. This means that not all TGVs are the same, and there are loading gauge
Loading gauge
A loading gauge defines the maximum height and width for railway vehicles and their loads to ensure safe passage through bridges, tunnels and other structures...
and signalling considerations.
The construction of the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
, completed in 1994, provided the impetus for the first cross-border high speed rail line. In 1993, the LGV Nord, which connects Paris to the Belgian border and the Channel Tunnel via Lille was opened. Initial travel times through the tunnel from London to Paris and Brussels were about 3 hours. In 1997, a dedicated high-speed line to Brussels, HSL 1
HSL 1
The HSL 1 is a Belgian high speed rail line which connects Brussels with LGV Nord at the border with France. It is long with 71 km of dedicated high-speed tracks and 17 km of modernised lines. Service began on 14 December 1997....
was opened. In 2007, High Speed 1, the Channel Tunnel Rail Link to London was completed after a partial opening in 2003. All three lines were built to the French LGV standards, including electrification at 25 kV.
Passenger trains built to specific safety standards are operated by Eurostar
Eurostar
Eurostar is a high-speed railway service connecting London with Paris and Brussels. All its trains traverse the Channel Tunnel between England and France, owned and operated separately by Eurotunnel....
through the Channel Tunnel. Direct trains now travel from London St. Pancras to Paris in 2h15, and to Brussels in 1h51. Thalys
Thalys
Thalys is an international high-speed train operator originally built around the high-speed line between Paris and Brussels. This track is shared with Eurostar trains that go from Paris or Brussels to London via Lille and the Channel Tunnel and with French domestic TGV trains. Thalys reaches...
high-speed international trains service the Paris to Brussels corridor, which is now covered in 1h20. Additional Thalys services extend to Amsterdam and Cologne in addition to Belgian cities.
Germany
Construction on first German high-speed lines began shortly after that of the French LGVs. Legal battles caused significant delays, so that the InterCityExpress
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
(ICE) trains were deployed ten years after the TGV network was established. The ICE network is more tightly integrated with pre-existing lines and trains as a result of the different settlement structure in Germany, with a population more numerous by a third than that of France, on a territory smaller by a third, resulting in more than twice the population density of France. ICE trains reached destinations in Austria and Switzerland soon after they entered service, taking advantage of the same voltage used in these countries. Starting in 2000, multisystem third-generation ICE trains entered the Netherlands and Belgium. The third generation of the ICE reached a speed of 363 km/h (226 mph) during trial runs, and is certified for 330 km/h (205 mph) in regular service.
Admission of ICE trains onto French LGVs was applied for in 2001, and trial runs were completed in 2005. In June 2007, the LGV Est
LGV Est
The LGV Est européenne is an extension to the French high-speed rail network, connecting currently Vaires-sur-Marne and Baudrecourt , and later Vaires-sur-Marne and Vendenheim . , it is the newest high-speed line in France and still under construction, with of a planned in service...
from Paris to the middle of the Lorraine region
Lorraine (région)
Lorraine is one of the 27 régions of France. The administrative region has two cities of equal importance, Metz and Nancy. Metz is considered to be the official capital since that is where the regional parliament is situated...
of France was opened. For the first time, high speed services over the Franco-German border were offered. SNCF
SNCF
The SNCF , is France's national state-owned railway company. SNCF operates the country's national rail services, including the TGV, France's high-speed rail network...
operates the TGV service between Paris and Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
via Strasbourg
Strasbourg
Strasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
and a daily round trip from Paris to Frankfurt
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main , commonly known simply as Frankfurt, is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany, with a 2010 population of 688,249. The urban area had an estimated population of 2,300,000 in 2010...
via Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken is the capital of the state of Saarland in Germany. The city is situated at the heart of a metropolitan area that borders on the west on Dillingen and to the north-east on Neunkirchen, where most of the people of the Saarland live....
, while ICE trains operate the remaining Paris to Frankfurt.
In the southwest, a new line between Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe
The City of Karlsruhe is a city in the southwest of Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, located near the French-German border.Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 as Karlsruhe Palace, when Germany was a series of principalities and city states...
and Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
is under construction to allow speeds of 250 km/h (155 mph), and a new line between Frankfurt and Mannheim for speeds of 300 km/h (186 mph) is in advanced planning stages. In the east, a 230 km (142.9 mi) long line between Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
and Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
is under construction for speeds of up to 300 km/h (186 mph). Together with the fast lines from Berlin to Leipzig and from Nuremberg to Munich, which were built recently, it will allow travel times of just about 4 hours from Berlin in the north to Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
in the south, compared to nearly 8 hours for the same distance just a few years ago.
Greece
The railway line between PatrasPatras
Patras , ) is Greece's third largest urban area and the regional capital of West Greece, located in northern Peloponnese, 215 kilometers west of Athens...
, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
and Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
is being replaced with a higher speed double track standard gauge with modern signalling. Some parts are built new and other parts are being upgraded. The 520 km line will have a maximum operational speed of 200 km/h, reducing travel time from five and a half to three and a half hours. Some parts of the line are capable of speeds in excess of 250 km/h (the new part at Tempe valley which is ready since 2003 and the new part of the line from Tithorea
Tithorea
Tithorea is a village and a former municipality in Phthiotis, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Amfikleia-Elateia, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 4,759 . The seat of the municipality was in Kato Tithorea, which is served by the...
to Leianokladi
Leianokladi
Leianokladi is a village and a former municipality in Phthiotis, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lamia, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 3,034 . The "Athens – Lamia – Larissa – Thessaloniki" national railway line passes through Leianokladi....
at Kallidromo
Kallidromo
Kallidromo is a mountain in Central Greece in southeastern Phthiotis and northeasternmost Phocis. Its maximum elevation is 1,372 m. The GR-1 passes to the north and to the southwest and the west, the GR-3 as well as the narrow curve, the OSE line is also to the southwest and west. The Phokida...
(not finished yet), however the mountainous geography of Greece limits turn radii significantly, thus resulting in the 200 km/h classification. The line between Thessaloniki, Idomeni and the border with the Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
is also being upgraded. The line between Thessaloniki, Promachonas
Promachonas
Promachonas is a village and a former community in the Serres regional unit, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Sintiki, of which it is a municipal unit. Population 252 . A major border crossing with Bulgaria is located here...
and the Bulgarian border is scheduled to be upgraded in the near future.
Ireland
Ireland's current fastest Intercity service is the Dublin to Cork "InterCity" service, which operates at 160 km/h (100 mph). Iarnrod ÉireannIarnród Éireann
Iarnród Éireann is the national railway system operator of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann . It operates all internal intercity, commuter and freight railway services in the Republic of Ireland, and, jointly with Northern Ireland Railways, the...
(Irish Rail) has recently bought new Mark4 Coaches from CAF
Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles
Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles is a rail equipment manufacturer based in Beasain in the Basque Country, Spain. Equipment manufactured by CAF includes light rail vehicles, rapid transit trains, railroad cars and locomotives, as well as variable gauge axles that can be fitted on any...
of Spain, which have a design speed of 200 km/h (125 mph). However, they are currently operated with 10 year old Class 201
IE 201 Class
The Iarnród Éireann 201 Class locomotives are the newest and most powerful diesel locomotives operating in Ireland, and were built between 1994 and 1995 by General Motors. They are model type JT42HCW, fitted with an EMD 12-710G3B engine of 3200 hp, weigh 112 tonnes and have a maximum speed of...
locomotives with a maximum speed of 160 km/h (100 mph). Iarnród Éireann plan to purchase powercars and upgrade the route to 200 km/h (125 mph) standard. On the Dublin to Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
line, IÉ are considering the following options for after 2020 (when the life of the existing De Dietrich Ferroviaire
De Dietrich Ferroviaire
De Dietrich Ferroviaire is a French manufacturer of railway rolling stock based in Reichshoffen, France. It was formed as a division of the De Dietrich group, which has a ....
coaches will have expired):
- Upgrading the route to 200 km/h (125 mph) with new carriages with journey times of 90 mins.
- Upgrading the route to 225 km/h (140 mph) with tilting trains, which would cut times to 60 minutes
Italy
The earliest high-speed train deployed in Europe was the Italian "Direttissima", the Florence–Rome high-speed railway (254 km/158 mi) in 1978, which used FS Class E444
FS Class E444
The FS E444 is a class of Italian railways electric locomotives. They were introduced in the course of the 1960 until 1975. Starting from 1995, all E444s were upgraded as E444R.The locomotives are nicknamed Tartaruga .-E444 standard:...
3 kV DC locomotives. Italy pioneered the use of the Pendolino
Pendolino
Pendolino is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Switzerland, China and shortly in Romania and Poland...
tilting train technology. Italian government constructor Treno Alta Velocità
Treno Alta Velocità
Treno Alta Velocità SpA is special purpose entity owned by RFI for the planning and construction of a high-speed network in Italy.-Purpose:...
has been adding to the high speed network in Italy, with some lines already opened. The Italian operator NTV
Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori
Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori is an Italian company which plans to be Europe's first private open access operator of 300 km/h high speed trains. NTV was created by four Italian businessmen to compete with Trenitalia. French state railway SNCF has a 20% stake in NTV...
plans to be the first open access high speed rail operator in Europe, by 2011, using AGV
Automotrice à grande vitesse
The Automotrice à grande vitesse ' is an Alstom train intended as the successor to France’s TGV high-speed trains; the name stands for automotrice à grande vitesse, or ‘high-speed self-propelled carriage’...
multiple units.
International links between Italy and France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia are underway. These links all incorporate extensive new tunnelling under the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
. European Union funding has already been approved for the Lyon Turin Ferroviaire
Lyon Turin Ferroviaire
Lyon Turin Ferroviaire , subsidiary of Réseau Ferré de France and Rete Ferroviaria Italiana , is the promoter of the joint French-Italian part of the future rail link between Lyon and Turin....
, which will connect the TGV and TAV networks, and for a link with Slovenia. In Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, Pendolino-based trainsets are operated by Slovenian Railways as the InterCitySlovenija
InterCitySlovenija
SŽ series 310 is a high-speed tilting EMU used on the InterCitySlovenija premium train service in Slovenia, operated by Slovenske železnice. It is based on the Italian ETR 460 commonly known as Pendolino. The train is capable of reaching a maximum speed of 200 km/h. The train is electric...
. Trains connect the capital Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
with Maribor
Maribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
and also with Koper in summer months. One unit operated as EC Casanova on the line Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
–Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, but this service was discontinued in April 2008.
The Brenner Base Tunnel
Brenner Base Tunnel
The Brenner Base Tunnel is a planned long railway tunnel through the base of the Brenner massif. It will run from Innsbruck Hauptbahnhof in Austria to Franzensfeste in Italy, replacing part of the current Brenner railway...
through Austria and Italy is also proposed.
Netherlands
HSL-Zuid
HSL-Zuid , is a 125 km-long high-speed railway line in the Netherlands to the Belgian border, with a branch to Breda. Together with the Belgian HSL 4 it forms the Schiphol–Antwerp high-speed railway...
is a 125 km high-speed line in the Netherlands. Using existing tracks from Amsterdam Centraal
Amsterdam Centraal
' is the central station of Amsterdam. It is one of the main railway hubs of the Netherlands and is used by 250,000 passengers a day, excluding transferring passengers. It is also the starting point of Amsterdam Metro lines 51, 53, and 54. The station building of Amsterdam Centraal was designed by...
to Schiphol Airport, the dedicated high-speed line begins here and continues to Rotterdam Centraal and to the Belgian border. Here, it connects to the HSL 4
HSL 4
The HSL 4 is a Belgian high-speed rail line which connects Brussels to the Dutch border. 87 km long , it was scheduled for completion by 2007.Together with the HSL 1 to the French border and HSL-Zuid to Amsterdam, the line has shortened journeys between Brussels,...
, terminating at Antwerpen-Centraal. Den Haag Centraal
Den Haag Centraal
Den Haag Centraal is the largest train station in the Dutch city of The Hague. It is the largest terminal station in the Netherlands with 12 tracks. The station was completed in 1973, next to the older station Den Haag Staatsspoor...
(The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
) and Breda
Breda railway station
Breda is a railway station in Breda, the Netherlands. It is situated on the Breda–Rotterdam railway, the Roosendaal–Breda railway and the Breda–Eindhoven railway.-History:...
are connected to the high-speed line by conventional railway lines. Services on the HSL-Zuid began on 7 September 2009. It will be served by Thalys
Thalys
Thalys is an international high-speed train operator originally built around the high-speed line between Paris and Brussels. This track is shared with Eurostar trains that go from Paris or Brussels to London via Lille and the Channel Tunnel and with French domestic TGV trains. Thalys reaches...
trains from Amsterdam to Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
and Paris, and Fyra
Fyra
Fyra is a high-speed train service operating on the Dutch HSL-Zuid and planned for the Belgian HSL 4, between Amsterdam, Schiphol Airport, Rotterdam, Breda, Antwerp, and Brussels. Fyra shares the high-speed tracks with operator Thalys. The service is offered by NS Hispeed and the NMBS/SNCB...
trains serving all HSL-Zuid stations between Amsterdam Centraal and Brussel-Zuid/Bruxelles-Midi.
HSL-Oost
HSL-Oost
HSL-Oost is the name of a proposed high-speed train line from Amsterdam into Germany via the Dutch cities of Utrecht and Arnhem...
was planned, but put on hiatus. It would connect Amsterdam Centraal via Utrecht Centraal
Utrecht Centraal railway station
Utrecht Centraal is the central railway station for the city of Utrecht in the Netherlands. It is the largest railway station in the Netherlands in terms of size, with fourteen platforms With Utrecht being located centrally in the Netherlands, Utrecht Centraal is also the largest station in terms...
and Arnhem
Arnhem railway station
Arnhem is a railway station located in Arnhem, the Netherlands. The station was opened on 14 May 1845 and is located on the Rhijnspoorweg , the Arnhem–Leeuwarden railway and the Arnhem–Nijmegen railway...
to Germany.
Norway
Currently, Norway's only high speed line is the 64 km Gardermobanen (The Gardermoen Railway), which links Oslo Airport
Oslo Airport, Gardermoen
Oslo Airport, Gardermoen is the principal airport serving Oslo, Norway. It acts as the main domestic hub and international airport for Norway, and the second-busiest airport in the Nordic countries. A hub for Scandinavian Airlines and Norwegian Air Shuttle, and a focus city for Widerøe, it is...
(OSL) with the metropolitan areas of Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. Here the Flytoget (the Airport Express Train) and some of the NSB (Norwegian State Railways) trains operate at speeds of up to 210 km/h (130 mph). Gardermobanen contributes to give rail transport a relatively high market share. Almost 38 % of the OSL passengers come by train, about 21 % by bus, and about 40 % by car.
Some more new high-speed lines are planned to be built in the Oslo region, during the 2010 and 2020 decades. Today, however, only small parts of Norway's rail network do permit speed faster than 130 km/h.
There is a political climate for building more high speed railway services in Norway, including long-distance lines from Oslo to Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
, Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Stavanger
Stavanger
Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
and Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
. They are assumed to be dedicated single-track high speed railways having up to 250 km/h (155 mph). This is still at the feasibility planning stages.
Poland
Polish State Railways
is the dominant railway operator in Poland.The company was founded when the former state-owned operator was divided into several units based on the requirements laid down by the European Union...
planned to buy Pendolino trains in 1998, but the contract was cancelled the following year by the Supreme Control Chamber due to financial losses by Polish Railways.
Current plans call for a "Y" line that will connect Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
–Łódź–Kalisz
Kalisz
Kalisz is a city in central Poland with 106,857 inhabitants , the capital city of the Kalisz Region. Situated on the Prosna river in the southeastern part of the Greater Poland Voivodeship, the city forms a conurbation with the nearby towns of Ostrów Wielkopolski and Nowe Skalmierzyce...
, with branches to Wrocław and Poznań
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
. The geometric layout of the line will be designed to permit speeds of 360 km/h. Construction is planned to begin around 2014 and finish in 2019. In the center of the city of Łódź the "Y" line will travel through an underground tunnel which would link two existing railway stations. One of them, Łódź Fabryczna, would be reconstructed as an underground station (reconstruction scheduled to start July 2010). In April 2009, 4 companies qualified for the 2nd phase of a public tender to prepare a feasibility study for construction of the line.
In April 2010, the tender for a feasibility study was awarded to a consortium led by Spanish company Ingenieria IDOM.
The feasibility study project has been granted €80 million in subsidy from European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. The total cost of the line including construction and train sets has been estimated at €6.9bn and is planned to be financed partially by EU subsidies.
There are also many plans to upgrade existing lines. The Warsaw - Kraków/Katowice line could be upgraded to 250 km/h by 2012 along with Warsaw - Gdańsk line, where reconstruction has already started (the latter being upgraded to allow speeds of 200 km/h)
The "Y" line links will possibly be extended to Berlin from Poznań and Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
from Wrocław, most probably by upgrading existing lines.
Portugal
High speed connections between Spain and Portugal have been agreed upon and planned, but initial works have yet to begin.The Portuguese government has approved the construction of six high-speed lines from the capital Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
to Porto
Porto
Porto , also known as Oporto in English, is the second largest city in Portugal and one of the major urban areas in the Iberian Peninsula. Its administrative limits include a population of 237,559 inhabitants distributed within 15 civil parishes...
, from Porto (Oporto) to Vigo
Vigo
Vigo is a city and municipality in north-west Spain, in Galicia, situated on the ria of the same name on the Atlantic Ocean.-Population:...
, from Aveiro to Salamanca
Salamanca
Salamanca is a city in western Spain, in the community of Castile and León. Because it is known for its beautiful buildings and urban environment, the Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. It is the most important university city in Spain and is known for its contributions to...
, from Lisbon to Faro
Faro, Portugal
Faro is the southernmost city in Portugal. It is located in the Faro Municipality in southern Portugal. The city proper has 41,934 inhabitants and the entire municipality has 58,305. It is the seat of the Faro District and capital of the Algarve region...
, from Faro to Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
and from Lisbon to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
, Spain, bringing the two countries' capital cities within three hours of each other. Since the late 1990s, the Italian tilting train, the Pendolino
Pendolino
Pendolino is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Switzerland, China and shortly in Romania and Poland...
runs the Alfa Pendular
Alfa Pendular
Alfa Pendular is the name of the Pendolino high-speed tilting train of Portuguese state railway company CP. It connects the cities of Braga, Porto, Aveiro, Coimbra, Santarém, Lisbon, Albufeira and Faro, among others at speeds of up to ....
service, connecting Portugal's mainland from the north border to the Algarve (southern counterpart) at a speed of up to 220 km/h (135 mph).
On the 8th of May, 2010, The Portuguese Transport Minister signed off the 40-year PPP covering the construction of the Lisbon-Madrid highspeed line. The total cost has been put at 1.359€bn, for a double track standard gauge line from Lisbon to the Spanish border. Also included is a broad gauge line from the Portuguese port of Sines to the Spanish border. The line is expected to open by the end of 2013 and will reduce the journey time between Lisbon and Madrid to 2hr 45min.
Russia
Two experimental high-speed trainsets (designed for 200 km/h operation) were built in 1974: locomotive-hauled RT-200 ("Russkaya Troika") and ER-200 EMUElectric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...
. The RT-200 set made only experimental runs in 1975 and 1980 and was discontinued due to unavailability of the ChS-200 high-speed locomotive- they were only delivered later. The ER-200 EMU
Electric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...
was put into regular service in 1984. In 1992 a second ER-200 trainset was built in Riga. Both sets are still in operation today. As of Feb 2010 fatigue cracks had developed in the wheelsets of all the trainsets and a decision is being made whether or not to temporarily discontinue operation.
In addition to these domestic trainsets, imported trainsets have been in operation since 2009. Siemens Velaro
Siemens Velaro
Siemens Velaro is a family of high-speed EMU trains used in Europe and China. The Velaro is based on Deutsche Bahn's ICE 3 high-speed trains, but is a full Siemens product unlike the ICE 3 which involved other manufacturers....
trainsets have operated since 2009 between St Petersburg and Moscow, at speeds of up to 250 km/h (155 mph) and since 2010 between Nizhny Novgorod
Nizhny Novgorod
Nizhny Novgorod , colloquially shortened to Nizhny, is, with the population of 1,250,615, the fifth largest city in Russia, ranking after Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and Yekaterinburg...
and Moscow, where service is limited to 160 km/h (99 mph). The Pendolino Sm6, similar to Finnish high speed trains, began operation in 2010 between St.Petersburg and Finland at up to 200 km/h (124 mph).
In February, 2010, RZhD announced it would shortly release a proposal for a new high-speed line to be built parallel to the existing line between St. Petersburg and Moscow due to congestion on the existing line. In April, 2010, it was confirmed that the new Moscow-St.Petersburg high-speed line was envisioned to be a 400 km/h running speed cutting the journey time from 3h 45m to 2h 30m.
On Jan 28th 2011, Russia announced that a high speed 400 km/h rail link would be built between Moscow and St Petersburg in time for the 2018 Fifa World Cup. The state will shoulder up to 70 percent of construction costs, with the remainder coming from outside investors. Most of that money is likely to come from international financial institutions, including the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, said Denis Muratov, general director of High-Speed Rail Lines. Sberbank, VTB and VEB may also be interested.
The Moscow to St. Petersburg line is expected to cost "somewhere around" 10 billion to 15 billion euros, not including land purchases, Muratov said.
Spain
AVE
Alta Velocidad Española is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . The name is literally translated from Spanish as "Spanish High Speed", but also a play on the word , meaning "bird".AVE trains run on a network of...
) high-speed rail system in Spain has been in service since 1992, when the Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
–Sevilla (Seville) route started running. Six other lines have been opened since, including 621 km long Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
–Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
. The recently completed Madrid-Valencia line brings the total length of the network up to 2.665 km, making it the longest in Europe, and the second in the world after China. Should the aims of the ambitious AVE construction program be met, by 2020 Spain will have connected almost all provincial capitals to Madrid in less than 3 hours and Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
within 6 hours with high-speed trains. The Spanish and Portuguese high speed lines are being built to European standard or UIC track gauge of and electrified with 25 kV at 50 Hertz from overhead wire
Overhead lines
Overhead lines or overhead wires are used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains at a distance from the energy supply point...
. The first HSL from Madrid to Seville is equipped with LZB train control system, later lines with ETCS.
Elsewhere in Europe, the success of high speed services has been due in part to interoperability with existing normal rail lines. Interoperability between the new AVE lines and the older Iberian gauge
Iberian gauge
Iberian gauge is the name given to the track gauge most extensively used by the railways of Spain and Portugal: namely ....
network presents additional challenges. Both Talgo
Talgo
Talgo is a Spanish manufacturer of railway vehicles. It is best known for a design of articulated railway passenger cars in which the wheels are mounted in pairs, but not joined by an axle, and being between rather than underneath the individual coaches...
and CAF
Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles
Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles is a rail equipment manufacturer based in Beasain in the Basque Country, Spain. Equipment manufactured by CAF includes light rail vehicles, rapid transit trains, railroad cars and locomotives, as well as variable gauge axles that can be fitted on any...
supply trains with interchangeable gauges and automatic gauge changer equipment which the trains pass without stopping. Some lines are being equipped with a third rail allowing trains with Iberian and UIC gauge to run on the same tracks. Other lines are equipped with sleepers for both Iberian and UIC gauge, where the track can be converted from Iberian to UIC gauge at a later time without changing the sleepers.
The first AVE line to link up with the French standard gauge network is the LGV Perpignan-Figueres
LGV Perpignan-Figueres
The LGV Perpignan–Figueres is an international high-speed rail line between France and Spain. The line connects two cities on opposite sides of the border, Perpignan in Roussillon, France, and Figueres in Catalonia, Spain. It consists of a line which crosses the French–Spanish border via the ...
, which opened on 19 December 2010, and includes a new 8.3 kilometres (5.2 mi) tunnel under the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
. This line, along with the AVE lines from Figueres
Figueres
Figueres is the capital of the comarca of Alt Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain.The town is the birthplace of artist Salvador Dalí, and houses the Teatre-Museu Gala Salvador Dalí, a large museum designed by Dalí himself which attracts many visitors...
to Barcelona and Madrid, should be operational by 2012. Upon completion, trains will be able to operate between the French and Spanish capitals without break of gauge for the first time. Other links, including one at Irun
Irun
Irun is a town of the Bidasoa-Txingudi region in the province of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain...
/Hendaye
Hendaye
Hendaye is the most south-westerly town and commune in France, lying in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department and located in the traditional province Lapurdi of the French Basque Country...
are also planned.
Currently several new HSR lines are under construction with design speed of 300–350 km/h, as well several old lines are being upgraded to allow passenger trains to operate at 250 km/h.
Three corporations have built or will build trains for the Spanish high-speed rail network: Spanish Talgo
Talgo
Talgo is a Spanish manufacturer of railway vehicles. It is best known for a design of articulated railway passenger cars in which the wheels are mounted in pairs, but not joined by an axle, and being between rather than underneath the individual coaches...
, French Alstom
Alstom
Alstom is a large multinational conglomerate which holds interests in the power generation and transport markets. According to the company website, in the years 2010-2011 Alstom had annual sales of over €20.9 billion, and employed more than 85,000 people in 70 countries. Alstom's headquarters are...
and German Siemens AG
Siemens AG
Siemens AG is a German multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Munich, Germany. It is the largest Europe-based electronics and electrical engineering company....
. Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation
Bombardier Transportation is the rail equipment division of the Canadian firm, Bombardier Inc. Bombardier Transportation is one of the world's largest companies in the rail-equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. Its headquarters are in Berlin, Germany....
is a partner in both the Talgo-led and the Siemens-led consortium. Because France has yet to electrify its rail lines at the TGV voltage of 25 kV all the way to the Spanish border, initial connections between the two countries will require special train sets, such are already in use between Paris and Amsterdam.
Sweden
Sweden today runs many trains at 200 km/h, including the X2X2 train
X2 is the Swedish high speed train system operated by the operator SJ under the X 2000 brand name. It has a top commercial speed of 200 km/h, but has reached 276 km/h in a test...
tilting trains, widebody and double-decker regional trains, and the Arlanda Airport Express X3. Since both the X2 and X3 are allowed to run at 205 in case of delay, they can technically be considered as high-speed trains. The X2 runs between many cities in Sweden including Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
. The Arlanda Express
Arlanda Express
Arlanda Express is an airport rail link connecting Stockholm Central Station with Stockholm-Arlanda Airport outside Stockholm, Sweden. Operated by A-Train AB, the trip takes 20 minutes and runs four to six times per hour using seven X3 electric multiple units...
trains connect Stockholm and Stockholm-Arlanda Airport
Stockholm-Arlanda Airport
Stockholm Arlanda Airport , is an international airport located in the Sigtuna Municipality of Sweden, near the town of Märsta, north of Stockholm and nearly , by road, south-east of Uppsala....
.
Parts of the network can be relatively easily upgraded to 250 km/h. This requires new signalling system, catenary, removal of level crossings and new trains. There are plans to upgrade specific railways to allow this speed. They have been delayed to after 2015. A number of upgrades from single to double track or new railway have been built since 1990. They have been built with curves capable for 250 km/h (some requiring tilting trains for that). However neither the signalling system, nor the trains allow more than 205 km/h before at least 2010. The Botniabanan
Botniabanan
The Bothnia Line is a high-speed railway line in northern Sweden. The long route, from Kramfors airport via Örnsköldsvik to Umeå, was opened in 2010 and will carry trains at speeds up to .-Introduction:...
is ready and allowed for 250 km/h trains in 2010, but no such trains will run there for the first years, partly because the manufacturers have no experience of this in such cold climate. A research project ("Gröna tåget") aims to get experience of it, to make such trains available before 2015. SJ plans to order such trains, in traffic in 2014.
There are plans for a long completely new high-speed railway for 250–320 km/h, Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
–Linköping
Linköping
Linköping is a city in southern middle Sweden, with 104 232 inhabitants in 2010. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality with 146 736 inhabitants and the capital of Östergötland County...
–Jönköping
Jönköping
-Notable people:*Lillian Asplund, RMS Titanic survivor*John Bauer, illustrator, painter*Amy Diamond, singer*Agnetha Fältskog, ABBA*Carl Henrik Fredriksson, editor-in-chief and co-founder of Eurozine*Anders Gustafsson, kayaker, Olympian...
–Borås
Borås
Borås is a locality and the seat of Borås Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 63,441 inhabitants in 2005.- Geography :Borås is located at the point of two crossing railways, among them the railway between Gothenburg and Kalmar, and is often considered the Swedish city gaining the...
–Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, since the existing railways are relatively congested. An informal date suggestion by the Banverket is operation by year 2030. For two parts (Södertälje
Södertälje
Södertälje is a city and the seat of Södertälje Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 86,069 inhabitants in 2010.The industrial city, about south of Stockholm, is the home to truck maker Scania AB and a top 10 pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca....
–Linköping
Linköping
Linköping is a city in southern middle Sweden, with 104 232 inhabitants in 2010. It is the seat of Linköping Municipality with 146 736 inhabitants and the capital of Östergötland County...
and Mölnlycke
Mölnlycke
Mölnlycke is a suburb of Greater Gothenburg, a locality and the seat of Härryda Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 14,439 inhabitants in 2005. The urban area stretches over two municipalities, Mölndal Municipality is the second....
–Bollebygd
Bollebygd
Bollebygd is a locality and the seat of Bollebygd Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 3,364 inhabitants in 2005. Between 1974 and 1994 it was in Borås Municipality.-Sports:The following sports clubs are located in Bollebygd:* Bollebygds IF...
) detailed planning is done, and they are expected to have construction start by around 2017 (opposed by the minister of finance
Anders Borg
Anders Erik Borg is a Swedish economist and politician, currently serving as Minister for Finance in the Swedish government. He is a member of the Moderate Party.- Youth and education :...
) and be in operation by around 2025.
Switzerland
Switzerland has no high-speed trains of its own yet. French TGVTGV
The TGV is France's high-speed rail service, currently operated by SNCF Voyages, the long-distance rail branch of SNCF, the French national rail operator....
(TGV Lyria
TGV Lyria
TGV Lyria is service brand used for TGV lines connecting France and Switzerland. Lyria is also a corporation that runs the service using SNCF staff in France and SBB CFF FFS staff in Switzerland .-Corporate status:...
) and German ICE
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
lines extend into Switzerland, but given the dense rail traffic, short distances between Swiss cities and the often difficult terrain, they currently do not attain speeds higher than 200 km/h (ICE3) or 160 km/h (TGV, ICE1, ICE2) there. The fastest Swiss trains are the ICN tilting trains, operated by the Swiss Federal Railways
SBB-CFF-FFS
Swiss Federal Railways and SFR are not in official use) is the national railway company of Switzerland headquartered in Bern. Formerly a government institution, it is since 1999 a special stock corporation with all shares held by the Swiss Confederation or the Swiss cantons...
since May 2000. They can reach higher speeds than conventional trains on the curve-intensive Swiss network, however the top speed of 200 km/h can only be reached on high-speed lines. The former Cisalpino
Cisalpino
Cisalpino AG was a railway company operating international trains between Switzerland and Italy connecting Basel, Schaffhausen, Zürich, Geneva, Milan, Venice, Trieste, Livorno, and Florence...
consortium owned by the Swiss Federal Railways and Trenitalia
Trenitalia
Trenitalia is the primary train operator in Italy. Trenitalia is owned by Ferrovie dello Stato, itself owned by the Italian Government. It was created in 2000 following the EU directive on the deregulation of rail transport.-Passenger transport:...
used Pendolino
Pendolino
Pendolino is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Switzerland, China and shortly in Romania and Poland...
tilting trains on two of its international lines. These trains are now operated by the Swiss Federal Railways and Trenitalia.
To address transalpine freight and passenger bottlenecks on its roads and railways, Switzerland launched the Rail2000 and AlpTransit
AlpTransit
AlpTransit, also known as New Railway Link through the Alps NRLA , is a Swiss federal project aimed to build faster north-south rail links across the Swiss Alps by constructing base tunnels several hundred metres below the level of the current tunnels...
projects. The first stage of the Rail2000 project finished in 2005, included a new high-speed rail track between Bern and Olten
Olten
Olten is a town in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland and capital of the district of the same name.Olten's railway station is within 30 minutes of Zurich, Bern, Basel, and Lucerne by train, and is a rail hub of Switzerland.-History:...
with an operating speed of 200 km/h. AlpTransit project is building faster north-south rail tracks across the Swiss Alps by constructing base tunnels several hundred metres below the level of the current tunnels. The 35 km Lötschberg Base Tunnel
Lötschberg Base Tunnel
The Lötschberg Base Tunnel is a railway tunnel on the BLS Lötschbergbahn's Lötschberg Line cutting through the Alps of Switzerland some below the existing Lötschberg Tunnel. It is currently the world's longest land tunnel and accommodates passenger and freight trains. It runs between Frutigen,...
opened in 2007 where New Pendolino
New Pendolino
The New Pendolino is a class of high-speed tilting trains built by Alstom Ferroviaria for Trenitalia and the swiss Railway SBB CFF FFS, known as the ETR 600 and ETR 610, respectively...
trains run at 250 km/h. The 57 km Gotthard Base Tunnel
Gotthard Base Tunnel
The Gotthard Base Tunnel is a new railway tunnel beneath the Swiss Alps, expected to open in 2016. With a route length of and a total of of tunnels, shafts and passages, it is the world's longest rail tunnel, surpassing the Japanese Seikan Tunnel....
(Top speed 250 km/h) is scheduled to open in 2015. The second stage of Rail2000 includes line upgrades in canton Valais
Valais
The Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland in the southwestern part of the country, around the valley of the Rhône from its headwaters to Lake Geneva, separating the Pennine Alps from the Bernese Alps. The canton is one of the drier parts of Switzerland in its central Rhône valley...
(200 km/h) and between Biel and Solothurn
Solothurn
The city of Solothurn is the capital of the Canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. The city also comprises the only municipality of the district of the same name.-Pre-roman settlement:...
(200 km/h). The start of work is planned for 2012–2016. However, the slow speed of lines between the Alptransit tunnels (Ceneri, Gotthard Base and Zimmerberg to name but a few) means that the capacity of Zürich-Milan services will remain limited until the speeds can be increased, given the strong negative effect of mixed rail speeds on capacity.
Turkey
Turkey started building high-speed rail lines in 2003 aiming a double track high speed rail network through the country allowing a maximum speed of 250 km/h. Only the planned line between İstanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Edirne
Edirne
Edirne is a city in Eastern Thrace, the northwestern part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. Edirne served as the capital city of the Ottoman Empire from 1365 to 1453, before Constantinople became the empire's new capital. At present, Edirne is the capital of the Edirne...
and Kapıkule
Kapikule
Kapıkule is the Turkish frontier town in Edirne Province on the border of Turkey and Bulgaria. Its counterpart on the Bulgarian side is Kapitan Andreevo. Together, they are the busiest land border crossing point in the world and the busiest in Europe....
is situated in the European part of the country.
The first line that was built aimed to connect İstanbul to Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
(via Eskişehir
Eskisehir
Eskişehir is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. According to the 2009 census, the population of the city is 631,905. The city is located on the banks of the Porsuk River, 792 m above sea level, where it overlooks the fertile Phrygian Valley. In the nearby...
) reducing the travel time from 6 – 7 hours to 3 hours 10 minutes. The Eskişehir-Ankara line has started operating regular services on March 14, 2009 with a maximum speed of 250 km/h, being the first High Speed Rail Service in Turkey making the Turkish State Railways
Turkish State Railways
The State Railways of the Turkish Republic or TCDD is the government owned, national railway carrier in the Republic of Turkey, headquartered in Ankara...
the 6th European national rail company to offer HSR services (although these are situated in the Asian part of the country). The Eskişehir-İstanbul line is still under construction and is due 2013.
The Ankara - Konya
Konya
Konya is a city in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. The metropolitan area in the entire Konya Province had a population of 1,036,027 as of 2010, making the city seventh most populous in Turkey.-Etymology:...
line construction began in 2006. The travel time is projected to be decreased to 70 minutes on this route. The construction of the Ankara - Kırıkkale
Kirikkale
Kırıkkale is the capital of the Kırıkkale Province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. It is located 80 km east of Ankara. According to the 2000 census, the population of the province is 280,834, of which 192,705 live in the city of Kırıkkale...
- Yozgat
Yozgat
Yozgat is a city and the capital district of Yozgat province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. According to 2009 census, population of the district is 113,614 of which 73,835 live in the city of Yozgat.-History:...
- Sivas line began in February 2009. Several other HSR line projects between major cities such as Ankara - Afyon - Uşak
Usak
Uşak is a city in the interior part of the Aegean Region of Turkey. The city has a population of 180,414 and is the capital of Uşak Province. The mayor is Ali Erdoğan ....
- İzmir
Izmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
, İstanbul - Bursa
Bursa, Turkey
Bursa is a city in northwestern Turkey and the seat of Bursa Province. The metropolitan area in the entire Bursa province had a population of 2.6 million as of 2010, making the city fourth most populous in Turkey. The city is equally one of the most industrialized metropolitan centers in the...
, İstanbul - Edirne
Edirne
Edirne is a city in Eastern Thrace, the northwestern part of Turkey, close to the borders with Greece and Bulgaria. Edirne served as the capital city of the Ottoman Empire from 1365 to 1453, before Constantinople became the empire's new capital. At present, Edirne is the capital of the Edirne...
- Kapıkule
Kapikule
Kapıkule is the Turkish frontier town in Edirne Province on the border of Turkey and Bulgaria. Its counterpart on the Bulgarian side is Kapitan Andreevo. Together, they are the busiest land border crossing point in the world and the busiest in Europe....
(Bulgarian border) have reached their final design and are expected to pass to the contraction phase soon. Ankara - Kayseri
Kayseri
Kayseri is a large and industrialized city in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It is the seat of Kayseri Province. The city of Kayseri, as defined by the boundaries of Kayseri Metropolitan Municipality, is structurally composed of five metropolitan districts, the two core districts of Kocasinan and...
and Eskişehir
Eskisehir
Eskişehir is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. According to the 2009 census, the population of the city is 631,905. The city is located on the banks of the Porsuk River, 792 m above sea level, where it overlooks the fertile Phrygian Valley. In the nearby...
- Afyon - Antalya
Antalya
Antalya is a city on the Mediterranean coast of southwestern Turkey. With a population 1,001,318 as of 2010. It is the eighth most populous city in Turkey and country's biggest international sea resort.- History :...
lines are planned to be built in the coming years. The Konya
Konya
Konya is a city in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. The metropolitan area in the entire Konya Province had a population of 1,036,027 as of 2010, making the city seventh most populous in Turkey.-Etymology:...
- Mersin
Mersin
-Mersin today:Today, Mersin is a large city spreading out along the coast, with Turkey's second tallest skyscraper , huge hotels, an opera house, expensive real estate near the sea or up in the hills, and many other modern urban...
- Adana
Adana
Adana is a city in southern Turkey and a major agricultural and commercial center. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, 30 kilometres inland from the Mediterranean, in south-central Anatolia...
and Sivas - Erzincan
Erzincan
-Trivia:Erzincan has the largest man made of Portrait of Atatürk, located north of the city, 176m×43m. It covers 7,500 square meter. Turkish Army made it 1982, in 29 days by 3,000 soldier, 100 tons of black and white paint was used...
- Erzurum
Erzurum
Erzurum is a city in Turkey. It is the largest city, the capital of Erzurum Province. The city is situated 1757 meters above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 361,235 in the 2000 census. .Erzurum, known as "The Rock" in NATO code, served as NATO's southeastern-most air force post during the...
- Kars
Kars
Kars is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. The population of the city is 73,826 as of 2010.-Etymology:As Chorzene, the town appears in Roman historiography as part of ancient Armenia...
lines were mentioned by the prime minister and the minister of transport.
The first 12 high speed trainsets are ordered from CAF
Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles
Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles is a rail equipment manufacturer based in Beasain in the Basque Country, Spain. Equipment manufactured by CAF includes light rail vehicles, rapid transit trains, railroad cars and locomotives, as well as variable gauge axles that can be fitted on any...
company, Spain. Further sets are expected to be provided by EUROTEM
EUROTEM
EUROTEM, alternatively Hyundai EURotem, is a joint enterprise between Hyundai Rotem of South Korea and TÜVASAŞ of Turkey which was founded in 2006 and started production in December 2007....
, which is a joint enterprise between Korean ROTEM
Rotem
Hyundai Rotem is a South Korean company manufacturing rolling stock, defense products and plant equipment. It is part of the Hyundai Motor Group...
and Turkish TÜVASAŞ
TÜVASAS
Türkiye Vagon Sanayi Anonim Şirketi, more commonly known as TÜVASAŞ, is a railcar manufacturer based in Adapazarı. TÜVASAŞ is responsible for the construction, refurbishment and repair of railcars for the Turkish State Railways, and is a 100% shareholding of the Turkish State Railways, reporting...
, situated in Adapazarı
Adapazari
Adapazarı is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of Sakarya Province. The province itself was originally named Adapazarı as well. Adapazarı is a part of the densely populated region of the country, known as the Marmara Region. As of 2010, the city has a population of 560,876 ...
, Sakarya
Sakarya Province
Sakarya Province is a province in Turkey, located on the coast of Black Sea. The river Sakarya creates a webbing of estuaries in the province....
.
Ukraine
The intention to redesignate key lines between major cities as gauge passenger only lines was announced in 2008. Lines included will be L'viv-Zhmerynka-Kiev-Poltava and Krasnohrad to Kharkiv, Donetsk and Dnipropetrovs'k. This will allow train speeds of up to 200 km/h. The project is expected to cost $6.5bn. As of 2011, work was only under way to facilitate the transfer of freight traffic on to other lines. Also under consideration is the construction of a standard gauge line to the Polish border from the city of L'viv, though at this time potential running speeds are unknown.( standard gauge line between Polish border and L'viv has been closed and dismantled since early 1990s.)
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom's first dedicated high-speed line, High Speed 1 between London and the Channel Tunnel, opened 14 November 2007. A second line, dubbed High Speed 2
High Speed 2
High Speed 2 is a proposed high-speed railway between London and the Midlands, the North of England, and potentially at a later stage the central belt of Scotland. The project is being developed by High Speed Two Ltd, a company established by the British government...
, has been proposed between London and Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
with the possibility of extensions to Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
and Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
. Like Finnish/Russian counterparts, the strongest reasons for new high speed lines are to relieve congestion on the existing network.
The Eurostar
British Rail Class 373
The British Rail Class 373 or TGV-TMST train is an electric multiple unit that operates Eurostar's high-speed rail service between Britain, France and Belgium via the Channel Tunnel...
trains, which run through the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
between the UK and both France and Belgium, are substantially different versions of the TGV trains, with support for four voltages, of them two present in the UK, both pantograph
Pantograph (rail)
A pantograph for rail lines is a hinged electric-rod device that collects electric current from overhead lines for electric trains or trams. The pantograph typically connects to a one-wire line, with the track acting as the ground wire...
and third-rail
Third rail
A third rail is a method of providing electric power to a railway train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway track. It is used typically in a mass transit or rapid transit system, which has alignments in its own corridors, fully or almost...
power collection (although the third-rail shoe-gear has now been removed following the opening of High-Speed 1), the ability to adapt to multiple platform heights, and to cope with no fewer than seven different signalling
Railway signal
A signal is a mechanical or electrical device erected beside a railway line to pass information relating to the state of the line ahead to train/engine drivers. The driver interprets the signal's indication and acts accordingly...
modes. Like the TGVs, Eurostar trains are articulated with bogies between the carriages, and most units have 18 passenger carriages and two power cars (the end passenger carriages also have their outer bogies powered). A fully loaded train of 750 passengers is roughly equivalent to five Boeing 737s (the aircraft typically used by low-cost airlines). These trains operate at the highest scheduled speeds of any in the UK, using a high-speed line between the Channel Tunnel and St Pancras station
St Pancras railway station
St Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the...
in London (High Speed 1) which was fully opened in November 2007.
The remainder of Britain's railway network is considerably slower. No trains run faster than 200 km/h (125 mph) using routes largely established in the middle years of the nineteenth century. A major reason for this limit is the lack of in-cab signalling
Cab signalling
Cab signalling is a railway safety system that communicates track status information to the cab, crew compartment or driver's compartment of a locomotive, railcar or multiple unit, where the train driver or engine driver can see the information....
, which has been deemed necessary by safety authorities for higher speeds. The speed limit on some sections of the East Coast Main Line
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
was experimentally raised to 140 mi/h during the upgrade and electrification of the route during the 1980s (both the Pendolino
Pendolino
Pendolino is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Switzerland, China and shortly in Romania and Poland...
s used on the West Coast Main Line
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...
and the Intercity 225
InterCity 225
The InterCity 225 is a locomotive-hauled domestic train in the United Kingdom, comprising a Class 91 electric locomotive, nine Mark 4 coaches and a Driving Van Trailer...
s used on the East Coast Main Line are capable of 140 mph) using flashing green signals to indicate the line ahead was clear for this speed. The line speed was later restored to 125 mi/h, and the flashing green system is no longer in use.
An attempt was made in the 1970s and 1980s to introduce a high-speed train that could operate on Britain's winding infrastructure - British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
developed the Advanced Passenger Train
Advanced Passenger Train
The Advanced Passenger Train was an experimental tilting High Speed Train developed by British Rail during the 1970s and early 1980s....
using active tilting technology. After four prototypes had been built and tested, the project was closed down when Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher, was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990...
and British Railways management lost confidence in the technology. The tilting action on demonstration runs induced a feeling akin to seasickness in the passengers, leading to the train being nicknamed the 'vomit comet', and the prototypes were expensive to operate and unreliable. However, the problems were near to a solution, and ultimately the technology was a success. British Rail sold it to an Italian firm, which fixed the problems. Trains based on the older technology have been in service in Italy for several years. In 2004, following a large investment in the West Coast Main Line
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...
, tilting Pendolino
Pendolino
Pendolino is an Italian family of tilting trains used in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Switzerland, China and shortly in Romania and Poland...
s, based on the Italian trains, were introduced. These trains are currently limited to a top speed of 125 mi/h although they were designed to run faster—cost over-runs on the track and signalling refurbishment project led to the line being rebuilt with the lower speed limit rather than the 140 mi/h originally planned, this is also true of the Intercity 225 used on the east coast main line which also has a design speed of 140 mph (225 km/h). The Pendolinos are operated by Virgin Trains
Virgin Trains
Virgin Trains is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland...
, on services from London Euston
Euston railway station
Euston railway station, also known as London Euston, is a central London railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden. It is the sixth busiest rail terminal in London . It is one of 18 railway stations managed by Network Rail, and is the southern terminus of the West Coast Main Line...
to Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
, and Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
(with occasional services to Holyhead
Holyhead railway station
Holyhead railway station serves the town of Holyhead on Holy Island, Anglesey. It is the western terminus of the North Wales Coast Line and is managed by Arriva Trains Wales, although Virgin Trains also serves it....
although for the foreseeable future these will continue to be hauled by diesel locomotives west of Crewe due to the lack of overhead line equipment).
, several proposals for domestic British high speed lines have been put forward and the government is considering building a north-south line. For more information, see High-speed rail in the United Kingdom
High-speed rail in the United Kingdom
The international definition of high-speed rail embraces new lines with a top speed of at least and existing lines with a top speed of around...
.
The Baltics
A north/south Rail BalticaRail Baltica
thumb|300px|Map of Rail Baltica...
line from Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
to Warsaw via Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
and Kaunas
Kaunas
Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
is planned, but will probably not be a purpose-built high-speed line, but be an upgrade of the existing line. Amongst various proposals, the Rail Baltica's line speed could vary from 120 km/h to 250 km/h, as no final decision has been made. For cost reasons an upgrade is the most likely decision. Some upgrade has already started.
Hungary and Romania
The two countries have agreed in November 2007 to build a high speed line between their capital cities BudapestBudapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
and Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
which would be a part of a larger transportation corridor Paris-Vienna-Budapest-Bucharest-Constanţa
Constanta
Constanța is the oldest extant city in Romania, founded around 600 BC. The city is located in the Dobruja region of Romania, on the Black Sea coast. It is the capital of Constanța County and the largest city in the region....
. There is no clear schedule for the project yet, but feasibility studies, ecological impact studies and right-of-way land purchase should not begin before 2009. The link will be designed to support speeds up to 300 km/h, but no technical details have been made public as of March 2008.
At the moment railway from Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
to Constanța
Constanta
Constanța is the oldest extant city in Romania, founded around 600 BC. The city is located in the Dobruja region of Romania, on the Black Sea coast. It is the capital of Constanța County and the largest city in the region....
support speeds up 160 km/h.