As the Swiss media reported on Thursday, there is good news and bad news concerning international night trains. 

The good news is that the national railway company, SBB, is committed to night trains connecting Zurich to Rome and Barcelona.

The first trains could be running as early as next year, SBB boss Vincent Ducrot told SRF media recently adding that it could also be 2026 before they start.

The bad news is that government funding is needed to get the project on the right track.

This money, however, could be difficult to obtain, because the Federal Council is looking into ways to cut spending, as Switzerland is facing a deficit of several billion francs.

Under Swiss law, no more than 30 million francs can be spent each year to promote international trains.

However, the law considers financing night connections as an optional provision, so the government is not obliged to spend any money on them.

And the problem for SBB and passengers keen on the night trains is that they are not very profitable and experts believe they won’t contribute much to Switzerland achieving its climate goals.

SBB boss Ducrot believes that if the promised subsidies are withdrawn the new night trains will simply not be feasible.

Existing night trains to and from Switzerland are popular. There are daily connections from Zurich to Berlin, Hamburg, Vienna, Graz, Amsterdam, Budapest, Zagreb and Prague.

But there are reasons they don’t make much profit.

Beds, sleeping compartments and toilets take up more space than seats on day trains so the maximum number of tickets that can be sold per train is therefore reduced. 

Normal daytime trains are in use for up to 18 hours a day but night trains are only used at night so spend much of the day unused.  

If subsidies do prove hard to come by there is hope cantons or cities that are interested in having night train connections could step in and help fund the services.

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