Austrian Railways presents the new generation of Nightjet night trains

2023-10-06 00:00:00

Austrian Railways presents the new generation of Nightjet night trains

The Austrian Federal Railways, BB, has presented the new generation of Nightjet trains, the most modern night trains in Europe. The presentation took place at the old Wien Nordwest station on September 30, as part of the festivities this year commemorating BB’s centenary.

(05/10/2023)

BB placed an initial order for thirteen seven-vehicle Nightjet compositions from Siemens Mobility in August 2018, followed by an additional twenty in August 2021, at a cost of more than €700 million.

The vehicles belong to the Viaggio family of Siemens Mobility, with bogies, developed in collaboration with the Technische Universitt Graz, that offer an exceptionally quiet ride and, at the same time, are 30 percent lighter than previous designs, which is It results in a reduction in energy consumption during its useful life and less aggressiveness to the lane, which also allows the maximum speed to be increased from 200 to 230 km/h.

Route Vienna-Hamburg-Insbruck and Innsbruck-Hamburg

These new vehicles were originally scheduled to begin circulation between Austria and Italy in December 2022. However, the pandemic causes occasional absences of up to 30 percent of factory employees and delays in the supply of components, all of which delay delivery. BB is confident that Siemens Mobility will deliver five units in December of this year, which will facilitate its introduction on the Vienna-Hamburg and Innsbruck-Hamburg routes, starting with the timetable change on December 10. Ticket sales will open on October 11.

Capacity of 254 travelers

Additional services are scheduled for 2024, with the ultimate goal of replacing most of BB’s existing night train fleet running in Austria, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Each Nightjet train consists of two sleeper cars, three sleeper cars and two seated cars, providing a total capacity of 254 passengers. For those traveling alone and looking for more privacy than a bunk bed, there are ‘mini cabins’ equipped with storage space, a folding breakfast table with integrated mirror, clothes racks and reading lights.

To access compartments, mini cabins and luggage racks, passengers can use NFC smart cards. Amenities include a real-time passenger information system, free Wi-Fi, USB charging points and windows that allow mobile signal reception. Passengers will also have lighting control panels with a crew call button, and snacks and drinks will be available. The trains are designed to hold six bicycles, plus luggage, strollers and sports equipment.