The European Alps have been an important traffic passageway but also a traffic block for most of the time. Mountain passes like Mont Genèvre, the Bernard passes, the Brenner and the Tauern have been in use already in Roman times. Others, like Mont Cenis, Simplon, Furka, Gotthard, Bernina, Albula and Semmering have been known to be in use already in early Medieval times.
Hence, it is no surprise that already in the early railway era, many of them have been fitted for this new kind of transportation: tunnels like Fréjus, Simplon, Gotthard, Tauern, as well as railway passes like Bernina, Brenner, and Semmering have been built and since then were important parts of an ever-growing European railway network.
One of the most intriguing stories of alpine railway traffic is the era of the famous "luxury trains", linking Britain, France, Germany and Scandinavia with Italy, the Balkan States, and beyond to Istanbul and Athens, as well as a large number of famous "tourist trains" serving Austria and Switzerland with an ever-increasing number of tourists, both for summer and winter vacations.
-> AlpineSet vehicles | -> AlpineSet rail types
Following table shows some special trains, suitable for the Alpine Set. Please note that only countries and companies included into the AlpineSet are shown:
Train name | Intro Year | Countries | Companies | Route |
Oostende-Wien Express | 1894 | D, A | DRG/DB, kkStB/BBÖ/ÖBB | (London) - Ostend - Brussels - Cologne – Mainz - Frankfurt - Passau - Linz - Wien |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1894 - | CIWL | 1895 extension to Budapest - Bucharest - Constantia | ||
1947 | FD | FD 51/52, later D 224/225 link | ||
1993 | EN | EuroNight "Donauwalzer" | ||
2002 | CNL | DB CityNightLine | ||
Engadin Express | 1895 | F, CH | État/Nord, SBB | (London) - Calais - Lille - Reims - Chalons- Belfort - Basel - Luzern / Zurich - Sargans - Chur |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1895 - ??? | CIWL | link | ||
Nord-Süd-Express | 1897 | D, A, I | DRG, kkStB, FS | Berlin - Leipzig - Regensburg -München - Kufstein - Innsbruck - Brenner - Bozen - Trient - Verona (- Milano - Cannes) |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1897 - ??? | CIWL | |||
Riviera Express | 1900 | D, CH, I, F | DRG, SBB, FS, SNCF | Berlin - Leipzig - Frankfurt - Basel - Milano - Roma (/ Cannes) |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1900 - 1912 | CIWL | original route Amsterdam - /Berlin - Strasbourg - Lyon - Ventimiglia | ||
1912 - 1914 | combined with Lloyd-Express | |||
1931 - 1939 | DRG 01 | Riviera-Napoli Express | ||
Lloyd Express | 1908 | I, CH, D | FS, SBB, DRG | Genova - Milano - Lugano - Lucerne - Basel - Strasburg - Mainz - Wiesbaden - Düsseldorf - Duisburg - Essen - Bremen - Hamburg |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1908 - ??? | CIWL | pr S6 | link | |
Gotthard Express / Gottardo | 1911 | D, CH, I | DRG, SBB, FS | Berlin - Milano - Genova |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1911 - ??? | CIWL | |||
1927 - ??? | Basel/Zurich - Lucerne - Bellinzona - Locarno - Lugano - Como - Milano | |||
1961 - ??? | TEE | |||
1988 - ??? | SBB RABe | |||
1997 - ??? | FS ETR 470 | link | ||
Simplon-Orient-Express | 1919 | F, CH, I | SNCF, SBB, FS | (Calais -) Paris - Dijon - Lausanne - Brig - (Simplon) - Milano - Venezia - Trieste - Zagreb - Belgrade - Sofia - Istanbul/Athens |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1919 - 1940 | CIWL | PLM 231A, 141C / SBB |
link | |
Suisse-Arlberg-Vienne-Express | 1924 | F, CH, A | SNCF, SBB, BBÖ | (Paris -) Basel- Zurich - Sargans - St. Anton - Kitzbühel - Salzburg - Wien (- Budapest) |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1924 - 1939 | CIWL | BBÖ 310 | ||
1931 | extension to Budapest | |||
1932 | name change to Arlberg-Orient-Express Paris .. Budapest | |||
Gotthard Pullman Express | 1927 | F, CH, I | SNCF, SBB, FS | Paris - Basel - Zurich - Lucerne - Arth-Goldau - Bellinzona - Chiasso - Milano |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1927 - 1931 | CIWL | SBB |
Basel - Lucerne | |
SBB |
Lucerne - Arth-Goldau | |||
SBB |
Zurich - Arth-Goldau | |||
SBB |
Arth-Goldau - Chiasso | |||
FS |
Chiasso - Milano | |||
Edelweiss | 1928 | F, CH | SNCF, SBB | Amsterdam - Brussels - Luxembourg - Strasbourg - Basel/Zurich - Lucerne |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1928 - 1939 | CIWL | |||
1957 - 1974 | TEE | SBB RAm | ||
1974 - 1979 | SBB RAe | |||
Holland-Italien Express | 1951 | D, CH, I | DB, SBB, FS | Amsterdam - Utrecht - Düsseldorf - Cologne - Mainz - Mannheim - Basel - (Gotthard) - Lucerne - Chiasso - Milano - Roma (- Rimini/Ventimiglia) |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1955 | F | DB 03, 01 / SBB |
Amsterdam - Roma | |
1957 | DB 01, 110 / SBB |
|||
1961 | DB V200, 110 / SBB |
|||
1969 - ??? | D | DB 110 / SBB |
Amsterdam - Rimini ; link | |
Blauer Enzian | 1953 | D, A | DB, ÖBB | Hamburg – Hannover - Fulda - München (- Salzburg - Bischofshofen - Badgastein - Villach - Klagenfurt) |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1953 - 1957 | FD | DB 03, 01, E17, E18 | to Munich | |
1953 - 1957 | DB V200, E18, E10 | |||
1965 - 1969 | TEE | DB 103 | ||
1965 - 1969 | extension to Klagenfurt | |||
1970 | diversion Kufstein - Wörgl - Zell am See | |||
1979 - 1981 | IC | Braunschweig – Hannover – Cologne – Frankfurt – Munich .. Klagenfurt | ||
1981 - ??? | Dortmund – Cologne – Frankfurt – Munich .. Klagenfurt | |||
Helvetia | 1953 | D, CH | DB, SBB | Frankfurt/Hamburg - Zurich |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1953 - 1954 | ??? | VT 08 | Frankfurt - Zurich | |
1954 - 1956 | ??? | VT 08 | Hamburg - Zurich | |
1957 - 1964 | TEE | VT 11.5 | Hamburg - Zurich | |
1965 - 1970 | DB 112 / SBB |
|||
1971 - 1978 | DB 103 / SBB |
|||
1979 - 1980 | DB V160/103 / |
Westerland - Basel | ||
1981 - 1982 | DB 103 / SBB |
Hamburg - Zürich | ||
Roland | 1953 | D, CH, I | DB, SBB, FS | Bremen - Hannover - Kassel - Frankfurt - Mannheim - Basel |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1953 | ??? | DB VT 08 | ||
1961 | extension to Zurich | |||
1961 | DB V200 | |||
1969 - 1975 | TEE | DB 103 / SBB |
Bremen - Hannover - Frankfurt - Heidelberg - Basel - Chiasso - Milano | |
1976 - ??? | IC | ??? | 'Tiziano' Hamburg - Basel - Milano ; link ; link | |
Bavaria | 1956 | D, CH | DB, SBB | Munich - Lindau - Bregenz - St Margrethen – St Gallen – Winterthur – Zurich (- Genève) |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1958 - 1962 | ??? | DB 18.6 / SBB |
||
1962 - 1969 | TEE | DB V200 / SBB |
||
1969 - 1971 | SBB RAm | |||
1971 - 1977 | DB V160 / SBB |
|||
1987 - 2002 | EC | EC 'Bavaria' | ||
Arbalète | 1957 | F, CH | SNCF, SBB | Paris - Troyes - Chaumont - Belfort - Basel - Zurich |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1957 - 1964 | TEE | SNCF X2770 RGP | ||
1964 - 1969 | SBB RAm | |||
1969 - 1979 | SNCF CC 72000 / SBB |
|||
Ligure | 1957 | F, I | SNCF, FS | Marseille - Toulon - Cannes - Nice - Monaco - Vintimille - San Remo - Savona - Genova - Milano |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1957 - 1967 | TEE | FS ALn 442 | ||
1967 - 1972 | FS ALn 442, ALe 601 | |||
1972 - 1982 | ??? | SNCF BB 25200, BB 22200 / FS E.444, E.646 | ||
1982 - ??? | IC | |||
Mediolanum | 1957 | D, A, I | DB, ÖBB, FS | Munich - Kufstein - Innsbruck - (Brenner) - Bolzano - Trente - Verone - Milano |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1957 - 1969 | TEE | FS Breda ALn 442-448 | ||
1969 - 1972 | DB VT11.5 | |||
1972 - 1974 | FS E444 / DB 110/112 | |||
1974 - 1982 | FS 656 / DB 111 | |||
1982 - 1984 | ÖBB 1044 | |||
Mont-Cenis | 1957 | F, I | SNCF, FS | Lyon - Chambéry - Montmélian - St-Jean-de-Maurienne - Modane - Bardonecchia - Ulzio - Torino - Milano |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1957 - 1959 | TEE | SNCF X2770 RGP | ||
1960 - 1972 | FS ALn 442 | extension to Venezia | ||
Lemano | 1958 | CH, I | SBB, FS | Genève - Brig - Domodossola - Milano |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1957 - 1971 | TEE | FS ALn 442 | ||
1972 - 1982 | SBB |
link | ||
1982 - ??? | IC | IC "Lemano" | ||
TransAlpin | 1958 | A, CH | ÖBB, SBB | Wien - St.Pölten - Linz - Salzburg - Innsbruck - Landeck - Bludenz - Feldkirch - Buchs - Sargans- Zurich/Basel |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1958 - 1965 | ??? | ÖBB 4130 | ||
1965 - 1977 | ÖBB 4010 | |||
2010 - | RailJet | ÖBB ??? | ||
Cisalpin | 1961 | F, CH, I | SNCF, SBB, FS | Paris - Dijon - Lausanne - Brig - Milano - Venise |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1961 - 1974 | TEE | SBB RAe | ||
1974 - 1984 | SNCF |
extension to Venezia | ||
Palatino | 1969 | F, (CH,) I | FS, (SBB,) DRG | Paris - Chambéry - Fréjus (2004 Simplon) - Torino - Genova - Pisa - Roma |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1969 - ??? | CIWL | |||
1971 - ??? | TEN | |||
1987 - ??? | EC | |||
1993 - ??? | EuroNight | |||
Prinz Eugen | 1971 | D, A | DB, ÖBB | (Bremen -) Hannover - Dortmund - Cologne - Mainz - Frankfurt - Würzburg - Nürnberg - Passau - Linz - Wien |
History | ||||
year | type | material | notes | |
1971 - 1975 | TEE | ??? | from Bremen | |
1976 - 1978 | ??? | Hannover - Wien link | ||
1980 - 1991 | IC | DB 103,110 / ÖBB 1042/44 | IC "Prinz Eugen" Hamburg-Altona - Wien | |
1991 - 1998 | EC | ??? | EC Kiel - Wien | |
1998 - | EC | ??? | ICE Hamburg-Altona - Wien | |
mb 25.01.2012