Why night trains between Paris, Berlin and Vienna are already stopping

TRANSPORT – If you were hoping to travel to Vienna or Berlin from Paris by night train between mid-August and the end of October, it’s a no-go. The Nightjets on the Paris-Berlin night line, which was inaugurated very recently last December, will be suspended for two and a half months, SNCF announced on Thursday, June 27, at Figaro and to the AFP.

This interruption will take place from August 12 to October 28 inclusive due to works on several sections of the line, in France and Germany. But it is not the only one that will have to close since the Paris-Vienna and Brussels-Berlin night train lines are also interrupted.

Closure rather than inconvenience

The railway group indicates that it has chosen to completely close these lines rather than opening diversions because this would still cause delays and inconvenience for users.

“In order to avoid significant train cancellations, significant delays and other inconveniences for our customers, the Nightjet offer partners have decided to implement a temporary interruption” of several night train lines, the railway company told AFP.

“The carriers have sought alternative solutions in conjunction with infrastructure managers, but all of them create risks of irregularity or even unexpected cancellation”she added.

The Vienna-Brussels line still running

For the Paris-Berlin line, the work on the French side is located on the Epernay – Château-Thierry section (north-east) and those in Germany between Halle and Eisenach (south-west).

Only the Vienna-Brussels line will operate “three times a week, as planned”the Austrian company ÖBB told AFP.

The SNCF specifies that no ticket “has not been sold during this period, so there are no customers affected by an offer cancellation”.

The suspension comes just months after the inauguration of the night train line between Paris and Berlin, which was supposed to be a symbol of the revival of night trains across Europe.

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