Archivio FS Italiane
Frecciarossa runs from Milan to Ljubljana.
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CNN
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Long-distance train journeys often feel like stepping back in time. Now, with the opening of a new fast and direct route between his two European countries, passengers will be transported back in time to the days of the Habsburg Empire, more than a century before his arrival.
A new high-speed route between Italy and Slovenia is being planned thanks to a new agreement between state operator Trenitalia and Slovenian railways Sea Passenger Transport.
Francesca Volpi/Bloomberg/Getty Images
Trains depart from Milan Central Station.
The Frecciarossa train runs east from Milan to Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana in seven hours. As well as passing through the famous Italian cities of Venice and Trieste, you’ll also stop at some of Slovenia’s famous natural attractions, including the Postojna and Škočian caves and Lipica, where the famous Lipizzaner horses have been bred since 1580.
Today, horses with “dancing” legs are best known for being on display at the Spanish Riding School in Vienna. This makes sense, since this region on the border of modern-day Slovenia and Italy was once part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Empire (or Habsburg Empire before 1867).
In fact, the train itself should feel like you’ve stepped back centuries to its earliest days. This is believed to be the first train from Milan to Ljubljana since the dissolution of the Empire in 1918.
It also covers the night train route from Budapest to Venice, which passed through Ljubljana but was discontinued in 2011.
Regional trains have been operating from Trieste to Ljubljana since 2018, but train staff from both operators rotate at Villa Opicina station on the border.
A Trenitalia representative told CNN that no start date has been set, but told the media that Slovenian Railways wants to start “as soon as possible”, which could mean starting in April. Initially he is scheduled to have one service per day, and eventually he will be expanded to two flights.
Croatian Railways’ Rijeka-Trieste (Villa Opicina) route is also scheduled to open in April.
LEDPIX/Alamy Stock Photo
We arrive in Ljubljana after 7 hours.
Frecciarossa (Red Arrow) trains can reach speeds of 300 km/h (284 mph) on the Italian network, but east of Venice they tend to be slower, so they will not be able to travel that much on this route, at least initially. It is unlikely to run fast. .
In March 2023, the Italian government pledged 1.8 billion euros (approximately $2 billion) to fully speed up the Venice-Trieste route. In the future, routes in Slovenia will also be tested to see if they can be upgraded.
“The time has come for a serious rail connection to be restored between Trieste and Ljubljana. It may sound like a joke, but it is often said that rail connections in this region were better 100 years ago than they are today. That’s the case,” says journalist Giovanni. Weil is the founder of the Extinct Countries project, which publishes guidebooks to countries that no longer exist, and is currently working on a guidebook about the Habsburg Empire.
“Trieste and Ljubljana were first connected by railway in 1857, when both cities were part of the Habsburg Empire. , one of the flagships of the empire’s infrastructure. Trieste was one of the most important ports in the world at the time, and its connection with Vienna was of great importance to the empire.
“By the end of World War I, Trieste was a city located on the northeastern tip of Italy, almost on the periphery, often lacking rail connections to Ljubljana, Zagreb, Belgrade, and Budapest to the east.
“We hope this marks the beginning of a new season of rail connections between Trieste and the Balkans.”
Markus Mainka/dpa/Photo Alliance/SIPA USA
Italy’s high-speed Frecciarossa trains reach speeds of nearly 320 miles per hour.
The agreement follows similar efforts by Trenitalia for the EuroCity and EuroNight trains, which link Italy with direct trains to Switzerland, Germany and Austria. This is a Eurocity route operated by Frecciarossa.
Trenitalia has also signed a preliminary agreement with Deutsche Bahn to bring Frecciarossa into service on Italy-Germany routes by the end of 2026. There are plans for a Milan-Munich route, with extensions from there to other destinations in Germany.