April the 25th, 2024 – A new international train route from Croatia has been introduced, and the tickets are already proving extremely popular.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the brand new international train route from Croatia will operate seasonally, and will be the first direct passenger railway line connecting Trieste (Villa Opicina) and Rijeka via Slovenia. The train that will run along the route was officially welcomed on Wednesday at the Rijeka’s railway station.
Trains running along the route Villa Opicina ‒ Rijeka ‒ Villa Opicina will run from now until the end of September, and will depart from Trieste, that is, Villa Opicina at 07:50. The return journey from Rijeka is scheduled for 18:25.
The new international train route from Croatia will stop and accept passengers at the stations in Opatija, Matulji and Šapjane in Croatia, as well as in in Ilirska Bistrica, Pivka, Divača and Sežana in neighbouring Slovenia.
The vehicle that will travel along the new route is a multi-system electric train owned by Slovenian Railways, with a capacity of 235 seats. It also has space for bicycles and pushchairs, and ensures the entry of people with disabilities and reduced mobility.
The price of a ticket from Villa Opicina to Rijeka is a mere 8 euros, and a return ticket is 16 euros. For a child from 6 to 12 years old, the price is four euros, and the transportation of children up to six years old is free. You have to pay five euros to transport a bicycle, and free Wi-Fi is available on the train.
Croatian Railways has pointed out that the new international train route from Croatia will better connect the rural, peripheral and cross-border areas of Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. It’s otherwise one of six pilot activities being implemented as part of the SUSTANCE project as part of the Transnational Cooperation Programme Interreg Central Europe.
The project partners are the Executive Secretariat of the Central European Initiative, SŽ Potniški promet (Slovenian Railways) and HŽ Putnički prijevoz (Croatian Railways).
As part of this project, Croatian Railways is also busy updating its website with information that encourages environmentally friendly travel and active holidays. It is also going to place a strong emphasis on the unique experience of combining travel by train and bicycle in Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. The website will provide information on bike transport, bike trails, bike-friendly accommodation and events across Croatia, Slovenia and Italy.
Eight partners from Croatia, Italy, Slovenia and Hungary are participating in the SUSTANCE project. The main goal is to improve the connection of public transport between sparsely populated rural, peripheral and cross-border regions and urban areas where the main traffic hubs are located. All of that is being done with an emphasis on improving public rail transport services in cross-border areas.
In addition, a lot of weight is being given to the development of innovative ICT solutions to improve sustainable passenger mobility all across Central Europe, using a bottom-up approach.
The total value of the project is two million euros, of which 80 percent is being financed through the Transnational Cooperation Programme Interreg Central Europe, and it will last until the end of March 2026.
The currently planned pilot activities include testing the new direct rail connection between Vila Opicina and Rijeka, and the experimental extension of the direct passenger rail service to Sopron on weekends from April to August in order for people to visit the Nežider Lake. In addition, there will be a feasibility study done into improving cross-border passenger rail connections between Divača and Pula, as part of which the installation of stations is planned for sharing bikes at Vodnjan and Savičenta railway stations. The development of an ICT application for transport services adapted to demand in peripheral areas of Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region is also part of this project.
