Midnight

The two faces of the Vientiane-Kunming train

Since Laos has been involved in China’s new Silk Road initiatives, for better or worse, things have changed.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

6.1.2023

5.6.2023

The effects of the Ukraine war on China’s ‘new Silk Road’

Clearly referring to the mythical route that transcontinental salesmen used in centuries gone by, it is essentially a vast web of commercial rail and sea links that will allow the country to transport goods to Europe and Africa.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

9.12.2022

5.6.2023

Could lightway trains save local railway lines?

SNCF, for example, has launched a service known as Flexy, which can carry up to 14 passengers on lines where trains can travel between 10 and 30 kilometres an hour.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

2.12.2022

5.6.2023

Why did Russia send a train of race horses to North Korea?

When railway services restarted between Russia and North Korea in early November 2022, the first train that travelled from one country to another was in fact a convoy filled with… 30 horses: five stallions and 25 mares.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

26.11.2022

5.6.2023

Iryo, Spain’s third high-speed rail operator

Having run an inaugural trip between Madrid and Valencia on November 21 2022, Iryo aims to run 16 return journeys daily between the Spanish capital and the city of Barcelona.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

25.11.2022

5.6.2023

The railway linking up the Gulf states

Gulf Railway, a project that aims to link up the various member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

18.11.2022

5.6.2023

France hands €3 billion to the railways (then backtracks)

On the initiative of Gérard Leseul, the Socialist MP for Seine-Maritime's 5th constituency, this sum was based on figures from se Réseau Action Climat

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

11.11.2022

5.6.2023

The world’s longest-ever passenger train

The trip took around 45 minutes, at an average speed of between 30 and 35 kilometres per hour.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

4.11.2022

5.6.2023

The French regions seeking €100 billion for the railways

A column by a group of 15 regional leaders in the newspaper Le Monde. In it, these men and women from across the political spectrum called on the national government to launch a new railway deal worth €100 billion between 2023 and 2033.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

28.10.2022

5.6.2023

How Belgium plans to reinvent its railways

At a time when the protection of the planet is an absolute necessity, the modernisation of the railway network in a country known for being flat is no less honourable or important. Let’s dig a little deeper.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

21.10.2022

5.6.2023

Climb aboard the high-speed KTX

Named KTX, for Korea Train Express, the trains are a symbol of the country’s cutting-edge technology and a very popular means of transport for locals. Let’s take a short trip.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

14.10.2022

5.6.2023

The great families of the railways - Episode 5

Having arrived in Canada at the age of 20, Georges Stephen was one of the principal architects of the railway industry in this part of the world, and was the first Canadian to be ennobled. Quite a character, in other words.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

8.10.2022

5.6.2023

The great families of the railways - Episode 4

The Vanderbilts is a modest family, descended from Dutch immigrants, would become both rich and incredibly divisive.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

1.10.2022

5.6.2023

The great families of the railways - Episode 3

They may not be as well known as the other two, but this clan produced two real pioneers of the railways: Edward and his son Joseph.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

23.9.2022

5.6.2023

The great families of the railways - Episode 2

James in the second instalment of our series on the great families of the European and US rail industry.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

17.9.2022

5.6.2023

Morocco’s first high-speed trains

In November 2018, Morocco inaugurated something really rather special: a high-speed railway line connecting Tangier, Kenitra and Casablanca.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

16.9.2022

5.6.2023

The great families of the railways - Episode 1

Emile and Isaac were both born in Bordeaux, on December 3 1800 and 25 November 1806. They were brought up in a Jewish family who had to flee first Spain and then Portugal, and were grandsons of Jacob Rodrigue Pereire, a pioneer of education for deaf and mute children.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

10.9.2022

5.6.2023

The great nationalisations of Euro rail travel - Episode 4

The story of the British railways starts with carriages mounted on tracks made of wood, then metal, and pulled by horses.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

19.8.2022

5.6.2023

The great nationalisations of Euro rail travel - Episode 3

The railways were taken into the hands of the state in 1937 but not in a single stage. In fact, it was the result of various interventionist moves that are very closely tied to the political history

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

12.8.2022

5.6.2023

The great nationalisations of Euro rail travel - Episode 2

It’s a rather unusual case, as the country was for a long time very behind when it came to the development of the railways, and would soon go through an extended period of political instability, what with the Spanish civil war and Francisco Franco’s dictatorship.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

5.8.2022

5.6.2023

The great railway nationalisations - Episode 1

We’re launching a new series on the great nationalisations in European rail, starting with the one that took place in Italy between 1903 and 1915.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

29.7.2022

5.6.2023

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 4

The opening up of passenger transport stems from the EU’s adoption of its fourth major package of rail reforms in 2016. This essentially divided the sector into two main categories.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

8.7.2022

9.6.2023

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 3

The idea of opening up passenger rail transport in Europe isn’t a new one. The first discussions between the member states of the European Union in fact took place in the 1970s.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

1.7.2022

5.6.2023

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 2

Because while trains may usually be considered a means to get humans from one place to another, they are clearly also a way of conveying goods too. So let’s climb aboard and slot ourselves in besides the factory products and girders.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

24.6.2022

5.6.2023

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 1

The most significant moments in the privatisation of the railways. In this first episode, we’ll be taking a look at British Rail, first created thanks to the nationalisation of four big private railway firms.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

17.6.2022

5.6.2023

The mythical trains that are no more - Episode 3

Deutsche Bahn’s City Night Line. Adored by passengers across Germany and its neighbouring countries, these sleepers ran for two decades across Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Denmark, France, the Czech Republic and Italy.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

10.6.2022

5.6.2023

The mythical trains that are no more - Episode 2

Running between Paris, Milan and Venice, the operator Thello allowed people to travel from Italy’s fashion capital to La Serenissima without having to pass through airport security and baggage checks (and with a far lower carbon footprint too).

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

3.6.2022

5.6.2023

The mythical trains that are no more - Episode 1

These trains essentially aimed to be trains and hotels at the same time. In other words, they would allow passengers to spend the night in a well laid out, comfortable train, with excellent on-board service.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

27.5.2022

5.6.2023

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - episode 4

For this fourth episode, we’ll be focusing on this project that aims to create a new night-train network linking several northern and central European countries, by joining up several existing services.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

20.5.2022

5.6.2023

The godfathers of the sleeper - Episode 2

Far from being a worldly socialite like his Belgian counterpart, Pullman came from a very working-class background. Throughout his life, he strived to observe, analyse and question existing structures and grabbed all opportunities that presented themselves to him – sometimes even going beyond the limits of the acceptable.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

14.5.2022

5.6.2023

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - Episode 3

Like Midnight Trains, but with ideas very different to our ‘hotels on rails’, this business is among those that set out to conquer the railways since they were privatised here in France. In this third part, we’ll be focusing on Speed’s plans for super-regular high-speed services between Paris and the surrounding region.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

13.5.2022

5.6.2023

The godfathers of the sleeper – Episode 1

If there’s one main reason that we’ve spoken about it so regularly, it’s no doubt that the train’s creator, Georges Nagelmackers, had very similar intentions to us here at Midnight Trains: he sought to make the sleeper-train journey an actually pleasant experience, filled with modern comforts.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

7.5.2022

5.6.2023

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - Episode 2

In this second episode, we’ll be singing the praises of a business that aims to bring high-speed travel to the most poorly connected of France’s regions.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

6.5.2022

5.6.2023

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - Episode 1

After three seasons in which roamed the corridors of a business like Midnight Trains, we’re launching a new four-part article series introducing you to the big new actors in the European rail industry.

Jean-Baptiste Bonaventure

•

29.4.2022

5.6.2023

S03E04: the final stages of approval

In a railway sector where responsibilities are fragmented, manufacturers legion and with a growing need for interoperability, what manufacturing rules must trains respect and how can you ensure they are compatible with the existing infrastructure?

Nicolas Bargelès

•

4.3.2022

5.6.2023

S03E03: The 12 stages of train approval

Having told you about the huge regulatory changes that have taken place in the rail industry over the past decades, now we’ll be tackling the specifics of the trains themselves.

Nicolas Bargelès

•

25.2.2022

5.6.2023

S03E02: Getting the go-ahead

Since European railway space was created, there’s no need to be a historic operator to run rail services on the Continent. But what authorisations do you have to obtain first?

Nicolas Bargelès

•

18.2.2022

5.6.2023

S03E01: What does 'open access' mean?

This season aims to help you better understand railway regulation in Europe, and thus everything Midnight Trains is having to reckon with before we can welcome you on board our trains from early 2024. So in the rail sector, does the exception prove the rule?

Nicolas Bargelès

•

11.2.2022

5.6.2023

A huge milestone for Midnight Trains

We’ve just signed a major partnership with TravelPerk. And we’re chuffed: TravelPerk is the world’s number-one travel management platform for businesses. That means they’re the guys organisations have the most faith in when it comes to planning business trips for their employees.

Hervé Marro

•

18.12.2021

9.6.2023

A beginner’s guide to designing trains S02E05

That’s the subject of our final instalment: materials and colours. Last time, we made a lot of references to the fact that senses are all-important when it comes to the impression we want to give passengers: the way things look and feel (or even smell) is key.

Romain Payet

•

11.12.2021

9.6.2023

A beginners’ guide to designing trains S02E04

We’re moving onto the next stage: how to go about integrating all the functional and technical elements required on board. We’re going to imagine the practical needs of passengers on our trains, the potential points of friction, and attempt to offer some solutions too.

Romain Payet

•

4.12.2021

9.6.2023

A beginner’s guide to designing trains S02E03

After a first season dedicated to how you go about buying trains, this time we are exploring how to design trains, in five main instalments (though no doubt we will return to the subject, since design will play such a huge part in our mission to reinvent the sleeper train).

Romain Payet

•

27.11.2021

9.6.2023

A beginner’s guide to designing trains S02E02

We’re going to make sure that inventory fits within the limited space of the train, assuring both comfort and optimal use of square footage, in order to define the layout of the carriages.

Romain Payet

•

20.11.2021

9.6.2023

A beginners’ guide to designing trains S02E01

Before going about buying trains, there are a number of key steps related to design that are essential because they’ll allow you to analyse the compatibility of the material as it is and to work out the costs of renovation, or to prepare the list of costs once you’ve consulted with manufacturers.

Romain Payet

•

13.11.2021

9.6.2023

A beginners' guide to buying trains S01E03

We’ve now come to what is probably the juiciest subject of the lot: how do you finance all this stuff? When you’re a newcomer in the rail sector, there are two possibilities.

Romain Payet

•

28.8.2021

9.6.2023

A beginner's guide to buying trains S01E02

Having explained last week how and why a new rail operator might go about purchasing used material, this week we’ll be focusing on new equipment – both its advantages and disadvantages.

Romain Payet

•

21.8.2021

9.6.2023

A beginners' guide to buying trains S01E01

We take you behind the scenes of Midnight Trains HQ. And so why not start from the very top? Right now we’re going to explain how exactly we’re going about buying our trains.

Romain Payet

•

14.8.2021

9.6.2023

From convenience to hospitality

Here at Midnight Trains, we’re aiming to offer passengers an unforgettable experience on-board our services. To let you in on the key ideas that inspire us, we asked Yorgo Tloupas, our creative director, to share his vision for the brand.

Yorgo Tloupas

•

31.7.2021

5.6.2023

Thalys is making way for Eurostar

The EU backs ten international rail projects

Will the Kenya-Uganda train see the light of day?

Renfe’s entry into the French railway sector

How rising electricity costs have impacted the French railways

Will a trans-Afghanistan train ever be a reality?

Start traveling with us thanks to our newsletter

The two faces of the Vientiane-Kunming train

The effects of the Ukraine war on China’s ‘new Silk Road’

Could lightway trains save local railway lines?

Why did Russia send a train of race horses to North Korea?

Iryo, Spain’s third high-speed rail operator

The railway linking up the Gulf states

France hands €3 billion to the railways (then backtracks)

The world’s longest-ever passenger train

The French regions seeking €100 billion for the railways

How Belgium plans to reinvent its railways

Climb aboard the high-speed KTX

The great families of the railways - Episode 5

The great families of the railways - Episode 4

The great families of the railways - Episode 3

The great families of the railways - Episode 2

Morocco’s first high-speed trains

The great families of the railways - Episode 1

The great nationalisations of Euro rail travel - Episode 4

The great nationalisations of Euro rail travel - Episode 3

The great nationalisations of Euro rail travel - Episode 2

The great railway nationalisations - Episode 1

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 4

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 3

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 2

How opening up the railways has transformed the industry - Episode 1

The mythical trains that are no more - Episode 3

The mythical trains that are no more - Episode 2

The mythical trains that are no more - Episode 1

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - episode 4

The godfathers of the sleeper - Episode 2

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - Episode 3

The godfathers of the sleeper – Episode 1

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - Episode 2

The actors shaking up the Euro rail industry - Episode 1

S03E04: the final stages of approval

S03E03: The 12 stages of train approval

S03E02: Getting the go-ahead

S03E01: What does 'open access' mean?

A huge milestone for Midnight Trains

A beginner’s guide to designing trains S02E05

A beginners’ guide to designing trains S02E04

A beginner’s guide to designing trains S02E03

A beginner’s guide to designing trains S02E02

A beginners’ guide to designing trains S02E01

A beginners' guide to buying trains S01E03

A beginner's guide to buying trains S01E02

A beginners' guide to buying trains S01E01

From convenience to hospitality