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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Europe’s Speedier Trains Cut Travel Times

William A. Davis The Boston Globe

The Eurostar train pulled away from its terminal in London’s Waterloo Station as smoothly as a Boeing 747 lifting off from Heathrow Airport. The image stuck in my mind and several times during the three-hour trip to Paris I sleepily glanced out the window to be startled awake by the sight of green French or British countryside where I expected puffy white clouds.

Sleek-looking, smooth riding, comfortable and traveling at speeds of up to 186 miles per hour, Eurostar is the most technically advanced train in the world. And the Chunnel, the 31-mile-long and $15 billion tunnel under the English Channel it that the Eurostar takes between Britain and France, “The Chunnel,” is one of the greatest engineering achievements of all time.

But to Americans used to problem-plagued Amtrak and underfunded local public transportation systems, western Europe’s high-speed intercity trains are all pretty impressive, as memorable to many travelers as the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben or the Matterhorn. If American railroads sometimes seem not to have traveled very far from their mid-19th-century beginnings, western Europe’s, with state-of-technology equipment and expanding service, are on the fast track to the 21st century.

Things that work well often aren’t very interesting, and the 20-minute-long Chunnel passage is as boring as going through any other long tunnel. In pre-Chunnel days, however, crossing the channel by ferry in bad weather could be so exciting that passengers were commonly terrified. I prefer being bored to scared.

Besides eliminating the possibility of seasickness (along with fear of drowning), the fact that Eurostar does the London-Paris trip in only three hours is a real boon to travelers. Until the Chunnel opened in October 1994, the rail-ferry-rail London-Paris trip took about 6-1/2 hours. And Eurostar service has shortened the London-Brussels trip by two hours and 15 minutes.

Even faster times are not far off.

Upgrading of the track Eurostar travels over in Britain in the next few years is expected to shave off about 30 minutes, making the London-Paris run only 2-1/2 hours around the time the century turns.

The French National Railroads ushered in a new era in rail travel in 1981 with introduction of high speed TGV (Tres Grand Vitesse, meaning Very Great Speed) service on the southeast route from Paris. Using dedicated track, the TGV averaged 160 miles per hour. Other TGV lines with higher speeds have since been added.

Today, some 150 cities in France and neighboring Switzerland are served by TGV trains. The most recent addition to the TGV network is the Thalys, which this year began operating between Paris, Brussels, and Amsterdam.

To improve service on the southeast line that serves Lyon, France’s second-largest city, French Railroads recently introduced double decker “duplex” coaches during peak travel periods. They don’t go any faster than other coaches but carry more passengers and, I can attest, the sweeping view of the French countryside from their top deck more than makes up for a little swaying.

The Swiss railway system, one of the world’s densest and most efficient, is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year with commemorative events at historic railway stations and tunnels throughout the country. And some of those tunnels, such as the one through the Simplon Pass between Switzerland and Italy, were as remarkable achievements in their day as the Chunnel is in ours. As an anniversary present to the many tourists who use its trains, the Swiss Federal Railways is giving an extra free rail day to purchasers of its various rail passes, as well as a 50 percent reduction for a companion when two people travel together on passes in October.

This June, the Swiss railways introduced double-decker first- and second-class coaches on the St. Gallen-Zurich-Bern-Interlaken route. As part of its Rail 2000 upgrading program, the federal railways recently began Cisalpino service, using Italian-made Pendolino, or tilting trains, on the Geneva, Basel-Bern, and Zurich to Milan routes, reducing travel time by up to an hour.

Because of the tilting capability - which enables trains to bend into curves rather than having to slow down for them - the Cisalpino can travel Switzerland’s scenic but twisting rail routes at up to 140 miles per hour. Some of my Cisalpino seatmates claimed the tilting made them feel dizzy, but my only complaint was that the windows weren’t bigger so I could take in more of the glorious Alpine scenery sliding by.

Tilting trains of the Pendolino type are also adaptable to the twists and turns of the Northeastern U.S. coastline. Trains like the Cisalpino, but built in Quebec, are schedule to go into service in the Northeast rail corridor at the end of 1999, and are expected to reduce travel time from Boston to New York to three hours.

To really appreciate the density, flexibility, and convenience of European train service, you need to use it the way Europeans do. For instance, you might take high-speed trains such as Eurostar or the TGV to cover long distances, then pick up a car at your destination - there are major car rental agencies at most railroad stations - to explore an area or cover shorter distances. In many countries, notably Switzerland, train schedules mesh with other forms of public transportation such as buses, lake ferries, cable cars, and mountain railways to make a rental car an option rather than a necessity.

As foreign tourists, American visitors to Europe have the advantage of being able to buy before they go a wide variety of discounted railroad passes and packages only sold outside of Europe. Passes can be bought from travel agencies or the North American marketing organizations of the railroads, Rail Europe and BritRail Travel International.

First of these passes to be sold in this country - and still the most famous - is the Eurailpass, now one of the 33 kinds of rail pass (most good only within one country) available from Rail Europe. Introduced in 1959, the Eurailpass exposed many young American backpackers to the delights of rail travel in the days when “Europe on $5 a Day” was both the title of a best-selling guidebook and an actual possibility.

The Eurailpass is accepted by railroads of 17 continental countries and the Republic of Ireland. British Railways - which serves England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland - does not participate but has its own pass programs.

Eurail passes are good for from 15 days to three months of first-class travel and priced from $522 to $1,468. Also available are Eurail Flexipasses, good for 10 or 15 days’ travel within a two-month period and costing $616 and $812 respectively.

Of course, not everyone wants to cover 17 countries in one trip and spend days at a time on trains. Many budget-minded travelers also prefer to save by going second class - quite comfortable in most countries and always just as fast as first class.

More popular than the Eurailpass these days is the Europass, which costs $316 and is good for five days of first-class travel within a two month period on the rail systems of the countries that are most visited and have the best railroads: France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Switzerland. (A similar pass for Eastern Europe - Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, and Slovakia - costs only $195.)

A Europass Youth, good only in second class, is $210. There is also a Europass Drive that combines three days of first-class train travel with two days use of a rental car. This pass costs $259 per person for two people traveling together or $309 for an individual.

BritRail also has a variety pass programs. The Classic Pass, good for unlimited travel for eight days to one month, starts at $249 in standard class, $355 in first class. Youth passes cost from $199 and senior passes from $305.

New this year is the BritRail Family Pass, which allows one child between 5 and 15 years old to travel free on a pass of the same type and duration as an accompanying adult. Additional children are half price.

Eurostar tickets may be purchased in this country from travel agencies, Rail Europe, or BritRail Travel International and can also be bought at the service’s terminals in Waterloo station in London and the Gare du Nord in Paris. One-way ticket prices start at $99.

For more information about European rail travel, call Rail Europe at (800) 438-7245 or BritRail at (888) 274-87245.