Possibilities for Introducing a New Night Train Connection in Middle Europe

Liberalisation of the rail transport market is the main aim of the European Union in the field of transport policy. Open access on the market allows railway undertakings to provide their services, but it also requires to compete with each other. In recent years, night train services have experienced a renaissance, especially in west-Europe countries. A development of this type of services is important to achieve the goal of carbon neutrality in EU, especially in context of affordable air transport. The aim of this study is to analyse current night train services in middle Europe and find opportunities for their further development. In this article we have proposed new night train connections between Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic, and Germany, provided by railway undertaking in open access mode, with a detailed cost calculation. This is necessary to assess the economic efficiency of introducing new connections. Results of the cost calculations form the basis of the price for transport on newly introduced routes.