Il FS Group, on the strength of its experience in the high-speed sector in Italy, looks carefully at Europe, as at the real future domestic market where the competition will not be only that between railway companies but "between collective and private transport". He explained it Luigi Ferraris, Chief Executive Officer of the Group, in ainterview to the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ). Various the Topics covered, including plans to introduce the Frecciarossa service in Germany cooperation with Deutsche Bahn, with the aim of reducing the travel time between Milan and Munich to just over four hours. Currently this connection takes at least seven hours and seventeen minutes with changes.
Milan-Munich train, the project continues
The technical process for allow the Frecciarossa di operate on the German rail network is progressing, opening up new travel options for passengers. Although in cooperation with Deutsche Bahn, Luigi Ferraris, in the interview, underlined theimportance of competition in the railway industry "which makes companies faster, more efficient and more impactful" and which also increases the overall number of passengers. The Italian example of high speed was the first in Europe to test the competition between two different operators, demonstrating its benefits.
Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane and Deutsche Bahn proposed new rides Rome-Munich and Milan-Munich with the possibility of extend them to Berlin. The route from Rome includes stops in Florence, Bologna, Verona, Rovereto, Trento, Bolzano, Brennero, Innsbruck and Munich. While the journey from Milan includes stops in Brescia, Verona, Bolzano, Brennero, Innsbruck and Munich. These trains will operate daily and the services will be provided in cooperation between Trenitalia, ÖBB and DB. Model chosen, is the cFrecciarossa 1000 convoy, since it already complies with the Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSI) required by the European Commission regulations.
Attention for the future also to the railway line towards Switzerland and Germany, further west considered to have good development potential. Here, to cover the route from Milan to Frankfurt in seven and a half hours – the shortest travel time possible – you need to make four changes.
French and German competition
Ferraris is well aware but not worried about the danger of competition: "the French have announced that they want to enter the Italian market" just as "the Germans are also free to take over, should they take this decision". This eventuality could lead to a further improvement of the already high levels of service between the main Italian cities.
“Looking ahead, I think the real competition shouldn't be between us and Deutsche Bahn or SNCF, but between the collective and private rail transport“, says Ferraris.
And the possibility of developing the high-speed infrastructure system in other non-European countries by bringing know-how and experience cannot be ruled out either.
Attention to the Italian cultural heritage
The German newspaper focused on Italy's cultural heritage (59 UNESCO sites) which deserves more attention also from the point of view of transport. And thanks to FS, visitors will have the opportunity to reach these places by train like never before. Last Sunday, in fact, the first direct connection was inaugurated Rome - Pompeii. In one hour and 47 minutes, the Frecciarossa 1000 high-speed train takes travelers to their destination without changes, one Sunday a month; “But starting August 6, we will expand the offering,” Ferraris said.
TTI – Italian Tourist Trains: new company for tourist destinations
With the aim of doing reach passengers to tourist destinations not particularly known, the FS Group is creating one new company (TTI – Italian Tourist Trains) who will deal with tourist rail services through Italy. "There are some railway connections, such as the one directed to Ravenna, which can be exploited - underlined the CEO of the FS Italiane Group - With the relaunch of our historic trains, we have taken note of how towns located in little-known valleys can come back to life".
