More and more news of massive rail projects across Europe just keeps rolling in, with plenty of brand-new services set to connect the continent’s most exciting cities in the near future. But one which is particularly mega is well on the way, and it’s connecting two of Europe’s most visited destinations: Paris and Milan.
That’s right – a whopping new route between the French capital and Italy’s second city is currently under construction, due to be complete in 2032. It’s known as the Turin-Lyon high-speed railway and will connect existing Italian and French networks.
The route will journey through the Alps via the new 56.8km long Mon d’Ambin Base Tunnel (set to become the longest in the world), and the aim is to improve the movement of freight as well as passengers and make journeys more efficient.
When it’s complete, there are hopes that freight traffic will be moved via the railway as opposed to on the road, which will reduce CO2 emissions and local air pollution. Moreover, passenger journey times between Milan and Paris by train will be slashed from seven hours to just four, upping the appeal to ditch flights on this route.
All those pros don’t come cheap, though – the project is estimated to cost a staggering €25 billion (yep, €25 billion). The EU is funding around 40 percent of that right now, but it could increase its contribution to 55 percent, as well as help France out with its portion of the work.
As with any major rail project spanning such a distance, there is some contention. The French town of Chimilin is set to be divided by the railway and has been opposing its development since way back in 1992, claiming the project could lead to economic uncertainty for the town.
It’s also worth noting that though the wider tunnels mean passenger trains will be able to reach around 140 mph, despite its name, this project doesn’t technically qualify as ‘high-speed’ by the European commission’s standards. Actually, it falls about 15 mph too short. But Paris to Milan in four hours? Still sounds pretty speedy to us.
We like trains
At Time Out, we’re big advocates for all things rail travel. We’ve got a list of the best luxury train rides in the world, as well as the best journeys in Asia, Europe and across the planet. Oh, and here’s our round up of Europe’s best train stations.
Did you see that a brand new train route connecting some of Europe’s most exciting cities is launching next year?
Plus: Europe is getting a brand-new winter sleeper train connecting seven cities.
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