New night train travels the length of Italy
Trenitalia, Italy’s national railway operator, has announced plans to launch a new service from Milan to Lecce this summer.
The train will depart from Milan, in the north of Italy, at 22h45. The train will then travel to the south of Italy, calling at Milano Rogoredo, Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna Centrale, Foggia, Barletta, Bari Centrale, Monopoli, Fasano, Ostuni and Brindisi before arriving in Lecce at 07h57.
Travelling in the other direction, the train will depart from Lecce at 21h05 and arrive in Milano Centrale at 07h35. The service will commence from June and will operate on weekends. This is the train line’s first sleeper service between Milan and Lecce.
Tickets for the train service will start from €55 (R1 102) for Super Economy, with upgrade options to Business and Executive cabins available.
Heathrow Express opens corporate booking platform
Heathrow Express, the rail service provider that links London Paddington Station and London Heathrow Airport, has unveiled a new booking platform for corporate bookings.
The features of the platform are a dedicated account manager, access to comprehensive reports, no booking fees, and a self-refund option.
“If you’re a travel agent, we strive to provide tailored incentives to meet your needs and those of your client,” the company said. “This platform is a significant step forward in providing a more tailored and efficient service to our valued corporate accounts,” said Mark Eastwood, commercial strategy lead at Heathrow Express.
Interested parties can contact Heathrow Express via email on HeathrowExpressSales@heathrow.com to set up an account.
High-speed train for Hajj
A new high-speed train will transport Hajj pilgrims from Jeddah Airport to Makkah, an upgrade from bus travel.
As part of Saudi Arabia’s efforts to improve the efficiency of Hajj pilgrimages, the new line will cut travel time in half. The train travels between Medina and Makkah, a trip that takes six hours by car or bus. The new line will shorten this time to about two and a half hours, travelling at speeds of up to 300 km/h.
The train will travel from Makkah and will stop at Madinah, al-Sulaymaniyah district, King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and King Abdullah Economic City station.
The Haramain high-speed train made its inaugural journey on May 26. It is expected that the train will provide 1,6 million seats on 3 800 trips for pilgrims this Hajj season.
Sydney Metro welcomes high-speed rail system
Sydney’s underground rail system, Sydney Metro, is undergoing massive development to introduce new high-speed trains and train stations.
The rail system will feature 45 high-speed driverless metro trains. All 45 of these trains are already being tested for operations and have completed at least one return journey between Tallawong and Sydenham at the new operational speed.
Sydney Metro Northwest opened in 2019, Sydney Metro City and Southwest lines and a new station beneath Martin Place, are set to open by mid-2024.
The estimated times for the new routes are as follows:
- Castle Hill to Martin Place - 35 minutes
- Macquarie University to Central - 26 minutes
- Chatswood to Gadigal - 13 minutes
- North Sydney’s Victoria Cross to Barangaroo - 3 minutes
- Central to Martin Place - 4 minutes
- Central to Sydenham - 7 minutes
- Sydenham to Chatswood - 22 minutes
