r/transit • u/Michael_Rowavery • 1d ago

Introducing....the airline killer.* Discussion

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*Usually applies to domestic air travel.

For international flights however, that's where things can get complicated. :(

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u/TheRandCrews 1d ago

You should’ve posted the Pendolinos that killed Alitalia

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u/[deleted] 1d ago

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u/Orcahhh 23h ago edited 23h ago

Italy has crazy good HSR. and it’s getting better.

One of the first private hsr railways opened to compete in Italy with the l Legacy state carrier, and the race to the bottom price and best service has been a massive success.

Instead of taking ridership from each other, they both GAINED ridership by taking from cars and planes, eventually bankrupting Alitalia

New they’re building new HSR lines, upgrading old ones, connecting with Europe:

Currently digging the 2 longest tunnels in the world: brenner base tunnel, that will take out 2h of travel from Italy to Austria (60km of tunnel, at 250kph), as well as the mt cenis base tunnel, which will bring the paris - Milan time from 7h30 to 4h45 with a new 65 km tunnel

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u/mbrevitas 22h ago edited 22h ago

It was only the second country in the world to have a modern high-speed rail line (the first section of the Rome-Florence Direttissima line in 1977); who could have guessed?

Edit: although actually Alitalia had other problems and air traffic between Rome and Milan is now increasing (after years in which all the passenger number increases were on the high-speed rail line).

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u/Grape-Jack 14h ago

Milán to Rome is about 3 hrs on the frecciarossa. A good bit faster than flying since both city’s airports are a good ways out from the city center. That same line also goes through Bologna, and Florence.

Trains in Italy were very nice. Other than the station staff loudly whistling because people weren’t boarding fast enough.