by InTrieste
The cross-border railway linking Trieste, Italy, and Rijeka, Croatia, will not resume operations in 2025, according to an announcement from the Central European Initiative (CEI), the lead organization behind the EU-funded Sustance Interreg project. Launched as a pilot connection between three countries—Italy, Slovenia, and Croatia—the so-called “Train of the Three Peoples” aimed to strengthen regional mobility but ultimately fell short of expectations.
Despite receiving praise in international media, including The Times, the service struggled to gain traction on the ground. From April 24 to September 30, 2024, the train carried just over 8,000 passengers, including 425 cyclists.
Several factors contributed to its underperformance. Due to technical incompatibilities between the Italian and Slovenian rail signaling systems, the train could not depart from Trieste’s central station. Instead, it began its journey from Villa Opicina, a smaller, less accessible station in the city’s outskirts.
Further complicating matters was a lack of promotion. There were no signs or information displays at Trieste Centrale or Villa Opicina, and tickets could not be purchased online. Passengers were required to buy separate tickets—often in cash—for each leg of the journey across different national rail networks.
Service frequency also proved a major limitation: the route offered only one daily departure in each direction, with the outbound train leaving Villa Opicina early in the morning. This schedule left little room for connecting services within Italy or Slovenia.
While the project achieved modest success in terms of ridership and generated international interest, the logistical and infrastructural barriers ultimately outweighed the benefits, at least in the eyes of organizers. With no plans for its return next year, the Trieste-Rijeka line will remain a brief chapter in cross-border rail experimentation.
