The vision for an incredible new “Tube for Europe” superfast train service has been unveiled. If built, the line will link Britain to 39 countries on the continent and transform travel around Europe.
Starline’s backers want the new high-speed network to rival short-haul flights in Europe, luring passengers with shorter rail journey times. Those behind the scheme say it would see 80% fewer short-haul flights, possibly slash emissions by 95% and connect 424 major cities to ports, airports and other railway stations.
Under the blueprints, sleek, trains sharing the same colour as the EU flag will stop at stations at 39 European countries and extend to the UK, Turkey and Ukraine.
Berlin, Prague, Rome, Helsinki, Stockholm, Vienna, Budapest, Tirana, Athens, Riga, Vilnius, Lisbon, Paris, Brussels, Madrid and Zurich are among the cities linked by the line.
Those behind the idea say they want to improve connections, infrastructure and travel times in eastern Europe to address an “imbalance” in the continent’s high-speed rail, which they claim has been dominated by France, Germany, Spain and the Benelux countries.
They add: “Starline changes this. It puts Eastern Europe on the high-speed map, integrating cities like Kyiv, Bucharest, and Sofia into a seamless continental network. It brings Warsaw and Berlin within easy reach of each other. It makes Belgrade and Budapest part of the same daily rhythm.”
Trains zipping along the route won’t be divided into different classes, but will still have quiet zones and cafés.
Starline’s visionaries have also suggested it could revolutionise freight transport in Europe, with speedier delivery of fresh goods, medicines and manufacturing parts.
Artificial intelligence driven, “sensor based” security would also ease the flow of passengers, with use of biometric gadgetry and automated “threat detection”.
News of Starline comes after plans to boost capacity at London St Pancras station were revealed last month.
St Pancras Highspeed, which owns the station and the high-speed tracks to the Channel Tunnel, has said it wants to encourage “new and existing train operators” to open new routes, with Germany and Switzerland identified as potential destinations.
The operator serves Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam, as well as running seasonal ski trains to the French Alps. It ditched direct services between London and Disneyland Paris in June 2023 and no longer operates trains between the British capital and south of France.
Spanish start-up Evolyn and billionaire entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group are developing proposals to launch rival services.
Getlink – the French owner of the Channel Tunnel – believes there is the potential for services between London and locations such as Bordeaux, Cologne, Frankfurt, Geneva, Marseille and Zurich.