High-speed direct trains to connect Munich and Rome from 2026
Direct high-speed trains will run between Germany and Italy via Austria by the end of 2026, German rail operator Deutsche Bahn has announced. The first route will connect Munich to Milan and Rome.
The journey from Munich to Milan will take about 6.5 hours, or 75 minutes less than the current travel time with transfers. Travel time to Rome will be about 8.5 hours, or a gain of 105 minutes.
There will be one connection a day when the route is launched. The operators – Deutsche Bahn, Italy’s Trenitalia and the Austrian ÖBB – intend to expand that later to five trips a day in each direction and to add stops in Berlin and Naples.
After the Brenner Base Tunnel opens, a rail tunnel under the Brenner Pass in the Alps, travel time will be reduced by another hour. The opening is scheduled for 2032.
The journeys will use Italian Frecciarossa high-speed trains, the first time the trains have run in Germany.
“Europe is growing ever closer together on the railways. We see that people increasingly want to travel across borders in an environmentally friendly way by rail,” said Deutsche Bahn spokesperson Michael Peterson.
Apostolos Tzitzikostas, European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, said: "The expansion of high-speed rail, especially cross-border rail, is our top priority. This new connection is a strong example of progress on this path."
A Frecciarossa train at Milan's central station © PHOTO PIERO CRUCIATTI / AFP
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