For the first time, a German high-speed train left Monday at 9:55 a.m. from Gare de l’Est in Paris to arrive in Berlin around 6 p.m. This new direct link between the two capitals aims to enable Europe to better compete with air transport.
This new direct connection between the two capitals, which passes through Strasbourg, Karlsruhe and Frankfurt, is provided by German high-speed ICEs rather than French TGVs. It foreshadows the rail Europe of tomorrow, where we will travel in a more ecological and economical way.
“I am convinced that young people will adopt this mode of transport immediately, and that the less young will follow little by little, because ecological awareness is spreading everywhere,” explained Jean-Pierre Farandou, the boss of the SNCF, during of the presentation of the project in May 2022.
According to him, people are no longer afraid of traveling 4 to 6 hours by train, both for reasons of energy costs and for civic reasons. A train journey between Paris and Berlin emits a hundred times less CO2 per passenger than the same journey made by plane.
This connection “creates a new bridge between the two great cultural and political centers of our continent”, welcomed Anja Schöllmann, director of production at Deutsche Bahn.
Once a day
The Paris-Berlin ICEs will depart once a day in each direction, at 9:55 a.m. from Paris and 11:54 a.m. from Berlin. They will travel at 320 km/h in France, but only at 250 km/h in Germany, where very high speed does not exist.
Finding train paths to travel on the extremely dense German network was not easy, according to Alain Krakovitch, director of TGV-Intercités. He hopes to be able to revise the timetable for an earlier departure from Berlin next year, and thus save a few minutes on travel time.
Because this direct connection only saves 20 to 30 minutes compared to existing connecting journeys.
The journey between Paris and Berlin, 1,100 km long, is probably the maximum that the high-speed train can offer while remaining attractive, concedes the boss of the SNCF. Beyond that, priority must be given to the night train, he says.
Technical differences to overcome
To meet its climate commitment, the European Union aims to double high-speed traffic by 2030 and triple it by 2050.
However, the network will still need to be standardized, because each State has its own equipment, infrastructure and regulations. For example, French trains run on the left, while German trains run on the right. While in Spain and Portugal, the lanes are wider than in the rest of Europe.
Radio subject: Olivier Schorderet
Adaptation web: Miroslav Mares
