Nightjet
Sleeper train | |
Predecessor | City Night Line |
---|---|
First service | December 2016 |
Current operator(s) | ÖBB |
Website | www |
Nightjet (stylised as nightjet) is a brand name given by the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) to its overnight passenger train services.
Nightjet operates in
Nightjet of the new generation
On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the ÖBB the 'new generation' of the Nightjet services was launched. Newly designed, more comfortable carriages built by Siemens Mobility were announced on 2 October 2023 for the 2024 schedule, starting 10 December 2023. The services will cross Germany from Hamburg to Innsbruck (and Vienna) and vice versa, to be expanded to the existing lines later.[1][2][3]
History
During December 2015, the German state railway company
In December 2016, the first Nightjet services were launched; that same month, Deutsche Bahn discontinued its own competing night trains.[7][8] During February 2017, ÖBB declared that passenger numbers on the Nightjet services were growing.[9]
In August 2019, the
Usage of the service steadily grew during the 2010s; in October 2019, ÖBB CEO Andreas Matthä stated the passenger traffic on the Nightjet had grown by 10 percent over the year prior.[13] During the first half of 2020, along with the majority of cross-border services in Europe, Nightjet services were temporarily suspended on account of the COVID-19 pandemic; in June 2020, the resumption of regular scheduled operations was announced.[14] In December 2020, four railway companies, including ÖBB, Deutsche Bahn, SBB, and France's SNCF, signed an agreement to cooperate on the development of night train services across Europe; specifically, the launch of four new Nightjet connections between 13 European cities will be prioritised. Two of these services will run between Vienna, Munich, and Paris, as well as Zurich, Cologne, and Amsterdam, starting in December 2021, while services between Vienna and Berlin, and Brussels and Paris, will commence during December 2023. In December 2024, a new service between Zurich and Barcelona will be launched as well.[15]
In August 2018, ÖBB announced the placement of an initial €375m order for eight day trains and 13 night trains as part of a wider €1.5bn framework agreement with the German engineering company
In October 2019, as a stopgap measure, ÖBB announced its intention to lease sleeping and couchette cars, permitting additional Nightjet services to be operated without having to wait for the delivery of its outstanding Siemens order. Specifically, two options were evaluated; the hiring of four sleeping and four couchette cars between 2020 and 2023 that can operate in Germany, Denmark and Sweden; or eight sleeping cars and eight couchette cars between 2021 and 2022 with approval for operation in Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and the Czech Republic.[19] In August 2020, ÖBB received permission by the Austrian federal government to purchase an additional 20 seven-car Nightjet trains along with additional locomotives for a combined value of roughly €500m. When combined with previous orders, ÖBB's new-build rolling stock for the Nightjet includes 231 new sleeping cars, couchettes, and seated vehicles; the expansion of the fleet will enable the operator to reach more destinations.[20][21] That same month, as to accommodate the expanding fleet, ÖBB invested €40m into the modernisation and enlargement of the Vienna Simmering depot, which included the construction of a new 5,500m2 maintenance hall with two elevated tracks.[22] In August 2021, a further 20 seven-car Nightjets, based on the new generation Viaggio Next Level, were ordered from Siemens Mobility.[23]
Despite these stop-gap measures, since 2023 passengers have been strongly affected by cancellations of service or severe delays.[24] This includes unannounced “downgrades”, in which customers who had reserved sleeping berths are informed on the train that they must sit for the journey as there is no sleeping carriage available.[25]
Train services
Train number | Operator | Route |
---|---|---|
NJ 446/447 | ÖBB | Vienna - Linz - Innsbruck - Feldkirch - Bregenz |
NJ 464/465 | ÖBB | Graz - Leoben - Innsbruck - Feldkirch - Zurich |
NJ 466/467 | ÖBB | Vienna - Linz - Salzburg - Innsbruck - Zurich |
NJ 468/469 | ÖBB | Vienna - Linz - Salzburg - Munich - Karlsruhe - Strasbourg - Paris |
NJ 401/40470 | ÖBB | Hamburg - Frankfurt - Freiburg - Basel - Zurich |
NJ 471/470 | ÖBB | Berlin - Frankfurt - Freiburg - Basel - Zurich |
NJ 456/457 | ÖBB | Graz - Vienna - Wroclaw - Frankfurt/Oder - Berlin |
NJ 490/491 | ÖBB | Vienna - Linz - Nuremberg - Hanover - Hamburg |
NJ 40490/40421 | ÖBB | Vienna - Linz - Nuremberg - Frankfurt - Amsterdam
|
NJ 420/421 | ÖBB | Innsbruck - Munich - Frankfurt - Cologne - Düsseldorf - Amsterdam |
NJ 50490/425 | ÖBB | Vienna - Linz – Nuremberg – Cologne – Brussels |
NJ 40420/40491 | ÖBB | Innsbruck - Munich - Nuremberg - Hanover - Hamburg |
NJ 40233/40294 | ÖBB | Vienna - Villach - Bologna - Florence - Rome |
NJ 40466/236 | ÖBB | Vienna - Linz - Salzburg - Villach - Udine - Venice |
NJ 295/294 | ÖBB | Munich - Salzburg - Villach - Bologna - Florence - Rome |
NJ 40295/40235 | ÖBB | Munich - Salzburg - Villach - Verona - Milan - Genova - La Spezia |
NJ 236/237 | ÖBB | Stuttgart - Munich - Salzburg - Villach - Udine - Venice |
NJ 233/235 | ÖBB | Vienna - Klagenfurt – Villach – Padua – Vicenza – Verona Porta Nuova – Brescia – Milan Rogoredo – Genoa Piazza Principe – La Spezia |
NJ 404/24 | ÖBB | Berlin - Erfurt - Frankfurt/Main - Strasbourg - Paris |
References
- ^ Wilcock, Rich. "OBB celebrates 100 years with Nightjet model". Rail Technology Magazine. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
- ^ "ÖBB's Nightjet new generation is the future of night train travel in Europe". Railway International. Induportals Media Publishing. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
- ^ "Nightjet unveiled as the 'flagship of European night train traffic'". Railway Gazette International. The Railway Gazette Group. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
- ^ a b Fender, Keith (21 December 2015). "DB to withdraw all remaining sleeper trains". International Railway Journal. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
- ^ Reidinger, Erwin (8 February 2016). "ÖBB evaluates options for new couchette coaches". International Railway Journal. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
- ^ "OBB presents Nightjet". Today's Railways Europe. No. 252. December 2016. p. 6.
- European Rail Timetable(Winter 2016/2017 edition), p. 3. UK: European Rail Timetable Ltd.
- ^ "Nightjet - OBB takes over former Citynightline Network". Modern Railways. No. 821. February 2017. p. 79.
- OÖ Nachrichten. 19 February 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
- ^ Briginshaw, David (19 August 2019). "SBB and ÖBB to expand Nightjet services". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Briginshaw, David (31 May 2019). "SBB considers reintroducing night trains". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Vosman, Quintus (11 October 2019). "Dutch government to support return of international night train". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Briginshaw, David (15 October 2019). "Nightjet passenger traffic up 10%, says ÖBB's CEO". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Burroughs, David (27 June 2020). "Cross-border services resume as European borders reopen". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Burroughs, David (8 December 2020). "ÖBB, DB, SBB, and SNCF announce Nightjet collaboration". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Burroughs, David (17 August 2018). "ÖBB agrees €1.5bn deal with Siemens for long-distance trains". International Railway Journal.
- ^ "Der neue Boom der Nachtzüge" [The new boom of night trains]. Manager Magazin (in German). 5 January 2019. Retrieved 7 January 2019.
- ^ Artymiuk, Simon (6 September 2022). "ÖBB unveils new-generation Nightjet cars". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Reidinger, Erwin (18 October 2019). "Austrian Federal Railways to hire sleeping cars". International Railway Journal.
- ^ Smith, Kevin (11 August 2020). "ÖBB to order more Nightjet trains". International Rail Journal. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
- ^ "Neue ÖBB-Nachtzüge kommen erst ab Sommer 2023". derstandard.de (in Austrian German). Retrieved 10 June 2022.
- ^ Cuenca, Oliver (25 August 2020). "ÖBB to invest €40m in Vienna Simmering Nightjet depot". International Rail Journal.
- ^ Clinnick, Richard (10 August 2021). "ÖBB orders 20 additional Nightjets". International Rail Journal.
- ^ "Bahnfahren zwischen Zürich und Wien – Hohe Preise und defekte Züge: Österreichs Bahn fährt in die Krise". Tages-Anzeiger (in German). 2023-12-22. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
- ^ Corazza, Nicola; wien.ORF.at (2023-06-14). "Ausfälle bei ÖBB wegen fehlender Züge". wien.ORF.at (in German). Retrieved 2024-04-11.
External links
- Media related to Nightjet at Wikimedia Commons
- Official website