High-speed rail in Europe

Operational high-speed lines in Europe
Networks of major high-speed rail operators in Europe, 2019

High-speed rail (HSR) has developed in Europe as an increasingly popular and efficient means of transport. The first high-speed rail lines on the continent, built in the 1970s, 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 co-ordinate 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. Several countries — among them France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom — are connected to a cross-border high-speed railway network. As of 2024, Spain operates the largest high-speed rail network in Europe with 3,966 km (2,464 mi)[1] and the second-largest in the world, trailing only China.[2]

More are expected to be connected in the coming years as Europe invests heavily in tunnels, bridges and other infrastructure and development projects across the continent, many of which are under construction now. Alstom was the first manufacturer to design and deliver a high speed train or HS-Train, which ended up in service with TGV in France.

Currently, there are a number of manufacturers designing and building HSR in Europe, with criss-crossed alliances and partnerships, including Alstom, Bombardier (owned by Alstom since 2021), Hitachi, Siemens, and Talgo.[3] The earliest European high-speed railway to be built was the Italian Florence–Rome high-speed railway (also called "Direttissima").[4]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference ADIF was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference CNN_es_cn was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "The 10 fastest high-speed trains in Europe". Railway Technology. 27 November 2013. Archived from the original on 18 August 2017. Retrieved 19 August 2017.
  4. ^ "Special report: A European high-speed rail network". op.europa.eu. Retrieved 22 July 2023.