Will the first edition be applicable all the way through summer like the UK timetable is? Going interrailing in July and would like to get the most up to date version for it!
This question touches upon subjects that have been discussed in the past on this and other groups, so I will try and keep as brief as possible.
My gut reaction to your question is 'it depends' (on where you are going). Variations occur by country (see comment on France below) but also by route. ON some routes schedules can remain static for several years, on other routes times may change several times over the same period.
And it all depends on a infinite number of variables - eg if new trains or timetable recast due to line modernisation (or closure!) have taken place. For example in recent years several main line routes in Switzerland have retained almost rigid times, but others have been recast due to the creation of S Bahn networks and the like.
Your question is difficult to answer without giving some background first, which I hope is not too tedious!
In the 'old days' (when I worked on the Cooks) the railway timetables were divided into clear cut winter and summer timetables. As such one could buy a Cooks twice a year and be fairly confident that the schedules would last mainly unchanged until the next official timetable. The traditional periods (adhered to my most main European Railways) were summer (end of May to end of September) and winter (the rest of the year.).
In other words you could buy the June and October issues to cover all year. TO cater for the actual timetable changes, the changeover months issues were often specially dated, rather than just being Month 19XX.
I've just been upstairs to look at samples issues from my collection exhibiting this trait. In 1975 the changeover date to winter schedules was obviously September 28 as I have a copy dated Sept 1-27 1975 and I have a copy dated from May 26 1974, so their was no plain 'June 1974' issue, whereas I also have a 'July 1978' issue.
Nowadays, engineering work affects lots of services, so it is arguably even more necessary to have a monthly issue than it was in the past. Having said that much will depend on what info the ETT people have in advance about major engineering work projects and whether they choose to publish it in advance. For example, the Lyon - Geneva line will be affected this summer due to re-electrification from 1500 dc to 25kv ac
Now European railways officially have an 'all year' timetable with one change in December, but different European railway modify timetables in different ways at different times of the year.
For example, the first promised edition of the new ETT will not be suitable fr France, as SNCF has a change of timetables in early July, to coincide with the of start of the main summer holiday period, when rush hour services around main conurbations reduce.
AS in the old days, Scandinavia has slightly different periods due to the latitude affecting the seasons.
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