Is Berlin Hbf the capital city station with the most direct trains to other capitals?

[jamesontheroad]

This weekend I will travel from Stockholm to Oslo on the first direct train since March 2020. So, along with Snälltåget's (seasonal) night train to Germany, Stockholm now has direct trains to three other capital cities (Oslo, Copenhagen and Berlin).

But which single railway station in a capital city (i.e. which single station in which European capitali city) has the most direct trains to other capital cities? I'm guessing it's Berlin Hbf... but I might be wrong. Vienna Hbf?

By my count, Berlin has (in normal times, and including seasonal services) direct trains to:

• Amsterdam
• Budapest
• Minsk
• Moscow
• Paris
• Prague
• Stockholm
• Vienna
• Warsaw

 

[JB_B]

...

By my count, Berlin has (in normal times, and including seasonal services) direct trains to:

• Amsterdam
• Budapest
• Minsk
• Moscow
• Paris
• Prague
• Stockholm
• Vienna
• Warsaw

I think you can add Bratislava.

 

[Roast Veg]

Vienna Hbf?

Has connections to all those listed except Stockholm and Paris, and in ordinary times additionally has services to Bratislava, Rome, Ljubljana, Brussels, Monte Carlo, Belgrade, and Zagreb.

 

[Alfie1014]

I think you can add Bratislava.

And Bern ICE275 04:18 Berlin Hbf to Interlaken East.

 

[mailbyrail]

Warsaw and Beograd seem to have had a fair number although not all are running
Warsaw to:
Moscow
Minsk
Berlin
Kyiv
Budapest
Prague
Vienna
Bratislava
Paris once a week with RSD

Beograd to:
Vienna (stopped by engineering work?)
Budapest (stopped by engineering work?)
Zagreb
Sarajevo
Ljubljana
Podgoritsa
Skopje
Sofia

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Has connections to all those listed except Stockholm and Paris, and in ordinary times additionally has services to Bratislava, Rome, Ljubljana, Brussels, Monte Carlo, Belgrade, and Zagreb.

Plus Kyiv (normally, via Budapest and Lviv).

 

[Peterthegreat]

Has connections to all those listed except Stockholm and Paris, and in ordinary times additionally has services to Bratislava, Rome, Ljubljana, Brussels, Monte Carlo, Belgrade, and Zagreb.

You can add Paris from next week.

 

[AlbertBeale]

I think you can add Bratislava.

And Copenhagen, en route to Stockholm?

 

[jamesontheroad]

Thanks for all the answers!

And Copenhagen, en route to Stockholm?

Not strictly - it stops in Høje-Taastrup, which is in a different municipality to Copenhagen.

 

[Tester]

This weekend I will travel from Stockholm to Oslo on the first direct train since March 2020. So, along with Snälltåget's (seasonal) night train to Germany, Stockholm now has direct trains to three other capital cities (Oslo, Copenhagen and Berlin).

But which single railway station in a capital city (i.e. which single station in which European capitali city) has the most direct trains to other capital cities? I'm guessing it's Berlin Hbf... but I might be wrong. Vienna Hbf?

By my count, Berlin has (in normal times, and including seasonal services) direct trains to:

• Amsterdam
• Budapest
• Minsk
• Moscow
• Paris
• Prague
• Stockholm
• Vienna
• Warsaw

To be boringly pedantic, Amsterdam isn't a capital city

 

[Peterthegreat]

To be boringly pedantic, Amsterdam isn't a capital city

According to the Netherlands constitution Amsterdam IS the capital city.
Article 32 of the Netherlands constitution

Article 32 Upon assuming the royal prerogative the King shall be sworn in and inaugurated as soon as possible in the capital city, Amsterdam, at a public and joint session of the two Houses of the States General. The King shall swear or promise allegiance to the Constitution and that he will faithfully discharge his duties. Specific rules shall be laid down by Act of Parliament

 

[Tester]

According to the Netherlands constitution Amsterdam IS the capital city.
Article 32 of the Netherlands constitution

Article 32 Upon assuming the royal prerogative the King shall be sworn in and inaugurated as soon as possible in the capital city, Amsterdam, at a public and joint session of the two Houses of the States General. The King shall swear or promise allegiance to the Constitution and that he will faithfully discharge his duties. Specific rules shall be laid down by Act of Parliament

Excellent

 

[DanielB]

According to the Netherlands constitution Amsterdam IS the capital city.

It is, indeed... but can imagine Tester being confused by the somewhat awkward situation in the Netherlands with the capital being Amsterdam but the seat of the government being The Hague. (And Amsterdam also isn't the capital of North Holland province)

Amsterdam Central itself also has a longer list of direct trains to other capitals than I initially expected (as you'd suspect to find the most connected capital somewhere in central Europe):
- Berlin
- Brussels
- Paris
- London
- Vienna
- Prague (seasonal)

In the past there also have been direct night trains to Copenhagen, Warsaw, Minsk and Moscow, but back then London was not yet in the list obviously.

 

[Tester]

It is, indeed... but can imagine Tester being confused by the somewhat awkward situation in the Netherlands with the capital being Amsterdam but the seat of the government being The Hague. (And Amsterdam also isn't the capital of North Holland province)

The beauty of this forum is that there are always things to discover!

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

Germany is a federal state, I think Berlin has direct trains to all fifteen capitals. Can the US match that?

Berlin is the capital of Berlin as well as of Germany, and there are countless trains from Berlin to Berlin.

 

[py_megapixel]

Germany is a federal state, I think Berlin has direct trains to all fifteen capitals. Can the US match that?

I don't think it can, as it would appear the capitals of Arizona, Ohio, South Dakota, Tennessee and Wyoming have no inter-city rail service at all!

 

[Bald Rick]

To strictly answer the OP, London must surely have the most direct trains *per day* to other capitals (in normal times):

Paris
Brussels
Amsterdam
Cardiff
Edinburgh
Leeds (or is it York)

 

[mmh]

To strictly answer the OP, London must surely have the most direct trains *per day* to other capitals (in normal times):

Paris
Brussels
Amsterdam
Cardiff
Edinburgh
Leeds (or is it York)

To strictly answer the OP, London only has one route, as the title states capital city _station_. Although it can have two if you're including either of the Yorkshire capitals

 

[30907]

Germany is a federal state, I think Berlin has direct trains to all fifteen capitals.

Nearly: none to Wiesbaden (Hessen) and only one per week to Mainz (Rheinland-Pfalz)

 

[AlbertBeale]

Thanks for all the answers!



Not strictly - it stops in Høje-Taastrup, which is in a different municipality to Copenhagen.

Well - yes, I know. But for that journey (to save a reversal) it's treated as "the Copenhagen stop", and Høje-Taastrup is on the city's metro, and, and,... OK; you win.

So - what was the final answer? Vienna?

 

[jamesontheroad]

I think it's Vienna, which is clearly the city I should go and live in right now.

 

[Austriantrain]

I think it's Vienna, which is clearly the city I should go and live in right now.

Since I know some of the people involved, I know that it is not a coincidence- there are train planners here who will go out of their way to convince colleagues from other countries to try and join up separate domestic services so that they run cross-border (eg the Graz - Vienna - Praha - Berlin RJ or the Vienna - Przemyśl day train) or motivate them to slowly and patiently build up new international train services (eg the now almost-hourly Vienna - Budapest service or the third Vienna - Poland train pair)

Of course, everything has to be consensual, but like everywhere else, if you don’t have people who put in the extra work required, nothing will get done.

 

[Giugiaro]

Well, at least Lisbon has a direct connection to:
- ;
- ;

Wait...

 

[Peterthegreat]

Well, at least Lisbon has a direct connection to:
- ;
- ;

Wait...

Same as Madrid then.

 

[Roast Veg]

Same as Madrid then.

And Tirana, and Sarajevo, and Ankara. There's continuous tracks to all three!

 

[duesselmartin]

I guess Moskva also has a good share of capital trains in normal times,

Minsk, Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, Monte Carlo, Vienna, Helsinki and how many Central European and former Soviet states?

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I think it's Vienna, which is clearly the city I should go and live in right now.

I wonder what Midge Ure thinks... he's probably quite indifferent.

 

[JonasB]

I guess Moskva also has a good share of capital trains in normal times,

Minsk, Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, Monte Carlo, Vienna, Helsinki and how many Central European and former Soviet states?

+Beijing and Ulan Bator

 

[oldman]

In the olden days (Timetableworld.com SZD 1990) Moscow had

Athens
Beijing
Belgrade
Berlin
Bern
Brussels
Bucharest
Budapest
Copenhagen
Helsinki
Madrid
Oslo
Paris
Prague
Pyongyang
Rome
Sofia
Ulanbataar
Vienna
Warsaw
(20)

They also had trains to Iran, Netherlands, Sweden, West Germany and Turkey, but not to the capitals.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

According to the Netherlands constitution Amsterdam IS the capital city.
Article 32 of the Netherlands constitution

Article 32 Upon assuming the royal prerogative the King shall be sworn in and inaugurated as soon as possible in the capital city, Amsterdam, at a public and joint session of the two Houses of the States General. The King shall swear or promise allegiance to the Constitution and that he will faithfully discharge his duties. Specific rules shall be laid down by Act of Parliament

Bern(e) also is only a "de facto" capital city. My understanding is that if the Swiss could get away with not having a capital at all, they would.