A railway renaissance? More travelers appear to be opting for the scenic route

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Train travel is picking up steam as more travelers see the journey as just as important as the destination. Rail journeys have become a trendy — and sustainable — way to crisscross continents, and Europe and other parts of the world are seeing a resurgence in their demand. Even the US is chugging away at plans to improve railways across the country, including what could become the nation's first true high-speed rail line.

THE 30-HOUR TRAIN RIDE THAT SELLS OUT IN SECONDS

• Turkey’s Eastern Express is making the country one of the world's leading rail destinations. It's historically a commuter train, but the train has gone viral among Turkish influencers for its stunning scenery through the east.?
• In response to the growing demand, the commuter service was turned into a tourist route in 2019. The sleeper train runs for more than 30 hours from bustling capital Ankara to the sometimes snowy wonderland of Kars — a distance of 800 miles — with stops along the way where excursions are organized.
• Tickets are notoriously hard to come by and passengers say they often sell out within minutes. Individual tickets can only be bought a month in advance, making them a coveted prize for the few who get them.

EUROPE’S NIGHT TRAIN REVOLUTION

• Trains’ recent renaissance, notably in mainland Europe, owes as much to growing environmental concerns as it does to the timeless cultural appeal that inspired Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orient Express.”
• Have you heard of flygskam? It’s Swedish for “flight shame,” and it has spread quickly from Scandinavia, encouraging climate-conscious travelers to seek alternatives to short-haul air travel.

• Luxurious new trains just launched operation between Austria and Hamburg, Germany yesterday. They feature comfortable sleeper cabins, discreet “pods” for solo travelers rather than traditional shared couchettes, and fully accessible cabins.
• Several private startups have also been jumping aboard the trend, promising new routes, cheaper fares or more luxurious accommodation. An ambitious new player is European Sleeper, which opened its Brussels-Amsterdam-Berlin route in May, providing useful connections with Eurostar for travelers to/from London.

PARIS’ DRIVERLESS TRAINS

• The venerable Paris Métro rapid transit system is about to get its most significant upgrade in decades with the arrival of the Grand Paris Express, a new 120-mile system that will add four lines and 68 new stations to the network.
• Unlike other Métro lines, it will use driverless trains to create a fully automatic rapid transport network, meaning there will be no need to hire and train new drivers, plus there will be greater resilience against disruptions from strikes.
• One big question is whether any of the new lines will be operational in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics, which will mostly be staged around the French capital. That was the original plan, but the project has been hit by various setbacks, including construction site floods, delays in equipment delivery and the Covid pandemic.?

WHY DOESN’T THE US HAVE MORE PASSENGER TRAINS??

• One expert tells CNN that a primary reason for passenger trains' decline in popularity was that the nation diverted its attention to a newer, flashier form of transportation: cars.
• By the early 1970s, passenger rail service had become a drag on private companies’ bottom lines amid low ridership, deteriorating infrastructure, and growing competition from cars and planes.
• In 1970, the US government created Amtrak. While the organization is much smaller than similar government-owned agencies in many countries, Amtrak operates in 46 states and serves more than 20 million passengers annually.

ON THE RIGHT TRACK

• Efforts to revive railroad travel in the US have recently gained speed amid a push to lower emissions. Amtrak’s own sleeper cars have existed since 1979, but earlier this year, it kicked off a process to replace and update its overnight train fleet for the first time in four decades.
• The federal government is going to pump $16 billion into improving the nation’s busiest rail line, Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, which runs from Boston to Washington, DC. Last week, President Biden also announced $8.2 billion in rail grants that will be allocated toward 10 projects funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act he signed into law two years ago.?
• Among the projects is a controversial high-speed rail project connecting Los Angeles and San Francisco that could cut driving time in half. The California High Speed Rail project, which is years behind schedule, is a frequent target of political criticism over major rail investments.
• Private companies, like California-based Dreamstar Lines, are trying to restore romance to train travel. The company has announced plans to build a luxury overnight sleeper train that will run between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

What aspects of train travel do you enjoy? What would entice you to do more traveling by rail? Share your stories in the comments.

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