After midnight

Running night-time rail services in the UK and Europe has proved difficult. What are the obstacles to high-speed night trains?

- By Alex McWhirter

Over the past few years several rail new entrants have announced ambitious plans whether for night or day trains.

They promised much but so far most have delivered little. One wonders whether management understood the complexities of a rail operation.

Take French operator Midnight Trains as a prime example. Last year Scotland’s media gushed over the news that Midnight Trains “could connect Scotland with Paris, Barcelona and Rome”.

No mention was made of the difficulties involved in operating trains through the Channel Tunnel, the provision of UK border staff and, last but not least, the lack of suitable rolling stock. By ‘suitable rolling stock’ I refer to that which Midnight Trains hoped to operate. It said the trains would be like a hotel on wheels with cabins and en-suite facilities, which would satisfy business and leisure travellers alike.

Austria’s OEBB has a virtual monopoly on Europe’s best night train rolling stock. This it deploys on its expanding Nightjet network. Why cannot new entrants ‘splash the cash’ and buy new trains?