The race to connect the great European cities through high speed trains adds a new chapter. The Italian Frecciarossa has begun its tests in Austria and Germany before taking a leap that will allow it to expand its international services starting next year.
The tests are part of the certification process necessary for these trains to circulate commercially in both countries. The project is developed by Trenitalia in collaboration with Deutsche Bahn and ÖBB, the railway companies of Germany and Austria.
The calendar is already marked. If the authorization process progresses as planned, the first services will begin during the summer 2027 and will allow you to travel directly from Italy to Munich, crossing Austrian territory.
Austria puts Frecciarossa to the test
Before transporting passengers, the train will have to demonstrate that it can operate on railway networks other than the Italian one.
In Austria, testing is carried out between Kufstein and the Brenner Passas well as in the corridor between Salzburg and Vienna. In Germany, the trials extend along the Berlin-Munich-Kufstein axis.
It is not just about checking their behavior on the tracks. One of the main challenges of international railway services is ensuring that the same train can adapt to the technical characteristics of several countries.
Convoys must be compatible with the different transportation systems. electrification and signaling that they will find during the tour. The companies involved are exchanging technical knowledge and specific courses have also been launched to prepare German and Austrian machinists.
Milan-Munich and Rome-Munich, the first routes
The first passengers will be able to check the results of these tests, expected in 2027.
The initial plan includes four connections distributed between the Milan-Munich and Rome-Munich routes. Both will cross Austria before reaching the German city.
From Milan, the journey will take approximately six and a half hourswith stops planned in Brescia, Verona, Rovereto, Trento, Bolzano and Innsbruck.
The journey from Rome will be longer. The estimated time is around eight and a half hours and the train will pass through Florence, Bologna, Verona, Rovereto, Trento, Bolzano and Innsbruck before arriving in Munich.
The opening of the Brenner base tunnel will subsequently reduce the times of both routes by approximately one hour.
The next step will arrive in 2028
The first phase will only be the beginning. The plans contemplate considerably expanding the service from December 2028.
By then, up to ten connections between Italy and Germany. Milan, Rome and Munich will continue to be part of the network, but extensions will be added towards Naples and Berlin.
The expansion also brings Frecciarossa closer to other major European destinations. Among the cities mentioned for future developments are Frankfurt and Krakow.
A train prepared to travel through Europe
The model that will allow this expansion to be developed is the Frecciarossa 1000, designed to be able to circulate on different European railway networks.
The train meets European technical specifications for interoperability and is prepared to adapt to the networks of several countries, including France, Germany, Spain, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands and Belgium.
Spain, in fact, is part of the international expansion that the Italian group has already undertaken before making the leap towards Germany and Austria.
The objective now is to move towards a network in which the large European centers are increasingly better connected by high speed and in which crossing a border does not necessarily force the traveler to change trains.
The tests that are already underway in Austria and Germany They are the previous step. If the schedule is met, in less than a year the first Frecciarossa will be able to directly link Italy, Austria and Germany, while the connection map will continue to grow during 2028.