Could Sleeper Trains Replace International Air Travel?

The case for sleeper trains replacing air travel is very much a European thing.¹ Flight shame (flygskam) is reducing demand for air travel, and European distances are such that overnight trains are feasible. At one point it looked like the combination of high-speed rail and budget airlines would doom European night trains, but that trend seems to be reversing itself: ÖBB’s Nightjet service is expanding in the face of soaring demand, and other operators are planning to reintroduce sleeper trains.

1. Transatlantic routes will remain stubbornly out of rail’s reach.