Passenger train services • Main line services / Ticketing • Intercity • New mainline operators

Note: this page is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for the official page of the operating company or manufacturer. 

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Key points to remember:
➤ European legislation – The concept of open access – Public service delegation – The British franchise
➤ New regional entrants – New mainline entrants – New freight entrants
➤ What is the economic balance sheet?

Background: European legislation
EU rail transport policy is geared towards the creation of a single European railway area. Four packages and a recast have been adopted in the space of 15 years, following the opening up of the rail sector to competition in 2001.

The third railway package contained Directive 2007/58/EC, which aimed to open up the market for international rail passenger services from January 1, 2010. Of great importance for domestic travel, the directive provided for the possibility of selling domestic service tickets along international routes.

The concept of open access
In European rail transport, an open access operator is a rail operating company that takes on the entire commercial risk, running on infrastructure owned by a third party and buying train paths on a chosen route. Above all, these companies recruit and train their own staff.

It is important to distinguish this system from the British franchise, a special case that Europe did not ask to be implemented. The British franchise granted a monopoly over 7, 10 or several years to a single operator, with significant commercial risks. This system did not survive with the country’s economic meltdown from 2016, the Brexit and the pandemic of the years 2020-2021.

➤ See our special UK franchise pages

This page includes only a list of operators who have operated – or still operate – mainline train services under open access. Also included are subsidiaries of incumbent operators operating under open access, generally in a neighboring country. Historic branches, divisions or cooperatives, such as Thalys, Eurostar, ICE International or Nightjet/Railjet, as well as ex-British franchises, do not fall into the open access category in the strict sense.

Hull Trains
(First Group)

Great-Britain
2000-…

Operator not subject to UK franchises. Hull Trains is owned by First Group and began operating its London-Doncaster-Hull services in December 2000, making it one of the first in Europe on the mainline market. The business is still going strong, and at the end of 2023 First Group applied to ORR for an extension of open access services to Sheffield.

Interconnex (†)
(Veolia Transport)

Germany
2001-2014

InterConnex was a brand of Ostseeland Verkehr GmbH, part of the Veolia Group. The operator ran the Leipzig-Berlin-Rostock route until the arrival of liberalized long-distance buses in 2013. The last train ran until December 13, 2014. DB now operates the route.

Grand Central
(Arriva UK)

Great-Britain
2007-…

Operator not subject to UK franchises. Grand Central is owned by Arriva UK and began operating its London-York-Sunderland and London-Doncaster-Bradford services in December 2007. The company is still going strong despite the pandemic and the reconfiguration of British politics.

Wrexham, Shropshire & Marylebone Railway (†)
(Arriva UK)

Great-Britain
2008-2011

Operator not subject to UK franchises. Wrexham, Shropshire & Marylebone Railway was owned by Arriva UK and began operating services between London Marylebone and Wrexham in April 2008. Success was not forthcoming and the company discontinued the ex-operations in January 2011.

Snälltåget
(Transdev Sverige)

Sweden
2009-…

Created by Transdev in 2006 under the name Véolia Transport, this company has been known as Snälltåget since 2013. It operates long-distance trains between Malmö and Stockholm, as well as seasonal trains to Jämtland and Austria. It also runs the Stockholm-Berlin night train 2/3 of the year.

Arenaways (†)
(private industrial)

Italy
2010-2011

Founded in 2006 by a private entrepreneur, Arenaways began its services in summer 2010, pulling DB AutoZug trains destined for Alexandria. This was followed in November 2010 by the launch of Turin-Milan trains. The lack of regulation of the Italian rail sector at the time quickly scuppered the service during 2011.

RegioJet
(Student Agency)

Czech Republic
2011-…

One of the great success stories on this list. RegioJet began operating on the Prague-Ostrava route in September 2011, before expanding to other routes. This Czech benchmark now operates abroad, including summer night trains to Poland and even the Ukrainian border, and projects to Berlin.

Thello (†)
(Trenitalia)

Italy / France
2011-2021

Thello was Trenitalia’s response to SNCF’s acquisition of a stake in NTV-Italo (see below). From December 2011, the company operated the Paris-Venice night train solo, followed by three pairs of day trains between Milan and Nice. Never profitable, Thello was hit by the pandemic and ceased service in June 2021. Trenitalia-France has taken over the staff (see below).

WESTbahn
(Private industrial)

Austria
2011-…

Founded in 2008, WESTbahn challenged the public operator ÖBB in December 2011 by offering an hourly service between Vienna and Salzburg. Financial problems forced the company to sell its fleet… and then to buy back identical trains, but at a lower leasing rate.

➤ See factsheet

NTV-Italo
(MSC, GIP III)

Italy
2012-…

This is the other great success of this list. NTV-Italo had Ferrari as its president! The company shook up the Italian landscape and benefited from a new law regulating the sector. It was the first private high-speed operator in Europe, with services starting on April 28, 2012. With undeniable success. NTV was sold in 2023 to shipowner MSC.

HKX (†)
(Multi owners)

Germany
2012-2018

Founded in 2009 as a joint venture between RDC Germany and Locomore Rail GmbH, HKX (for Hamburg-Cologne-Express) was never able to find the virtuous path on this route devoid of high-speed rail. The adventure began in July 2012 and ended in March 2018, when Flixtrain took over the route (see below).

Leo-Express
(50% Renfe)

Czech Republic
2013-…

A third player in the Czech Republic, after CD and RegioJet? Leo-Express was founded in 2010 and launched its first trains in January 2013. The Prague-Ostrava line now has 3 operators, a record in Europe. Looking for a partner, Leo-Express sold 49.9% of its shares to Spanish operator Renfe, and 5% to Swedish maintenance company Euromaint.

MTRX (†)
(MTR Nordic AB)

Sweden
2015-2024

MTRX was the brand of MTR Nordic AB, a European subsidiary of Hong Kong-based urban train operator MTR. This operator began Stockholm-Gothenburg services on March 21, 2015, in competition with SJ. In addition to a loss of regional contracts, MTRX was sold in 2024 to a subsidiary of the Finnish public group VR.

Astra Trans Carpatic  
(Astra Vagoane Călători Arad)

Romania
2017-…

The least known of this page in a country little known for its liberalization. Astra Trans Carpactic was founded in 2014 and launched its first private night train in February 2017 between Arad and Bucharest, extended to Constanța in summer. It provides other services under contract signed with the state.

Flixtrain
(Flix SE, various investors)

Germany
2017-…

The bus operator determined to challenge the all-mighty Deutsche Bahn. Flixtrain is the rail brand of Flix SE (formerly Flixmobility GmbH), a Munich-based startup operating thousands of Flixbus buses. After a test run in 2017 on the ashes of Locomore and HKX, Flixtrain launched his regular services in Germany.
➤ See factsheet

Ouigo España
(SNCF)

Spain
2021-…

A special feature. Spanish liberalization is regulated, with dedicated traffic quotas. The State neither orders nor pays for services. It’s limited open access. Although 100% SNCF, Ouigo España can be seen as a pure player, managing its own trains and staff recruitment and training. The 1st Ouigo España set off on May 6, 2021 between Madrid and Barcelona.

Lumo
(First Group)

Great-Britain
2021-…

In the midst of the pandemic, at a time when the British rail industry was burying its franchising policy, First Group brought its project to fruition. On October 25, 2021, Lumo, a low-cost train concept still unknown in Great Britain, took its first passengers between London and Edinburgh, at low fares, on the ECML, which had a reputation for being commercially difficult. ➤ See factsheet

Trenitalia France
(Trenitalia)

France
2021-…

Thello is dead, long live Trenitalia France! Announced in late autumn 2021, this company, the French extension of Trenitalia, with the remaining Thello staff and new recruits, launched its very first private TGV in France, on December 18, 2021, between Paris, Lyon and Milan, with Hitachi Rail Frecciarossa trains approved for French LGVs. A revolution…

iryo
(ILSA, Trenitalia, Globalvia)

Spain
2022-…

Born of a consortium between ILSA, a subsidiary of a Spanish airline, and Trenitalia, which is already active, iryo is the other competitor, along with Ouigo España, to have obtained liberalized traffic quotas. With Renfe, this makes three operators on three Spanish routes. iryo began service in November 2022 on the Madrid-Barcelona route.

European Sleeper
(Dutch cooperative)

Netherlands
2023-…

Another Dutch start-up, with technical support from RegioJet, was determined to revive night trains without government subsidies. The frequently postponed launch date of the Brussels-Amsterdam-Berlin night train became a reality on May 25, 2023, departing from Berlin. Another Brussels-Venice train arrives in 2025.

Renfe France
(Renfe)

France
2023-…

In February 2022, SNCF unilaterally announced the end of its Elipsos cooperation with Renfe, the Spanish public operator. The two public operators were to operate separately. Renfe then obtained slots and staff to take over the AVE Madrid-Marseille and Barcelona-Lyon services from July 13, 2023. Before looking further ahead…

VR Snabbtåg Sverige AB
(VR Group)

Sweden
2024-…

VR Snabbtåg Sverige AB was created on 17 June 2024. It is a 100% subsidiary of the Finnish public group VR, which took over the Stockholm-Gothenburg service from the former company MTRX. Stadler staff and rolling stock have been transferred to the new operator.

Future projects already underway at various stages

GoVolta

Netherlands
2025 -…

First mooted in December 2023, this new rail brand from Flywise Travel announced in autumn 2024 the launch of a daily daytime service between Amsterdam and Berlin from September 2025.

Yosaria Trains
(Private industrial)

Slovakia
…-…

Yosaria Trains was founded in July 2022 and has obtained authorization from the Slovak national transport authority DÚ to operate one daily night train in each direction on the 540km Bratislava – Žilina – Košice – Humenné route. These trains would comprise ex-CNL double-deck sleeping cars.

Le Train
(Private industrial)

France
…-…

The project originated in the southwest of France (Bordeaux, Aquitaine). Today, Le Train is a small holding company based near Angoulême, with several subsidiaries. Le Train’s target area is mainly north of Bordeaux, with lines between Bordeaux and Nantes, Bordeaux and Tours, and Bordeaux and Rennes by Talgo Avril trainsets.

Grand Union
(Private industrial)

Great-Britain
…-…

Grand Union is the brainchild of Ian Yeowart, who previously founded Alliance Rail Holdings and Grand Central, in open access, before selling them both to Arriva. In December 2022, Grand Union received authorization from the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to operate trains between London, Cardiff and Carmarthen. Further projects on the WCML are reportedly under consideration.

Ilisto
(Private industrial)

France
…-…

This French company, originally Kevin Speed, aims to offer high-speed rail travel, for everyone, every day. It was set up in 2021 by Laurent Fourtune, an engineer formerly with RATP (Paris public transport) and Getlink. Kevin Speed wants short high-speed trains for medium-distance journeys. In 2024, it obtained a 10-year agreement on SNCF Réseau train paths.

Proxima
(Private industrial)

France
…-…

This French company, whose name is still provisional, is expected to come into being on June 6, 2024, after completing a €1 billion financing round with Antin Infrastructure Partners. The money will be used to purchase 12 Avelia Horizon trainsets from Alstom.

Longitudes
(ex-Arenaway)

Italy
…-…

It’s a relaunch, that of the late Arenaway. The entrepreneur is back at it with the help of Renfe in Piedmont, before looking further afield at a project we don’t yet know very much about.

Go-Op
Co-operative structure

Great-Britain
…-…

Open access passenger train services between Swindon, Taunton and Weston-super-Mare. The Office of Rail & Road has agreed access to Go-op but has set conditions because its co-operative structure is novel for the UK rail sector. Go-op is required to provide evidence ‘without delay, and no later than November 2025’ that it has the necessary finance to start operations.

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