New intermodal bus/train service
27th February 2019.
Project CONNECT2CE – new intermodal service bus/train from Trieste to Lubiana: finalized the agreements to launch the new experimental cross-border integrated ticket.
On Thursday 14 February, Trieste Trasporti and Slovenske Železnice (Slovenian railways) signed the agreement for the launch of a new cross-border integrated public transport service (bus/train) between the cities of Trieste and Ljubljana, at the Central European Initiative headquarters. On Friday 22 February, the regional assessorship of Infrastructures and Territory of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region adopted the regional act to approve the tariff for the experimental service.
This initiative is part of the European project CONNECT2CE, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund in the framework of the programme Interreg Central Europe 2014-2020 and aims at improving public transport accessibility in rural, peripheral and cross border areas of Central Europe with a focus on three main topics:
- improvement of cross border connectivity;
- promotion of integrated ticketing and tariff schemes;
- implementation of innovative ICT tools to increase the efficiency of public transport services for passengers.
In this framework, the Central European Initiative – in its role of Lead Partner of CONNECT2CE – promoted and coordinated a cross border technical board which involved not only the two operators (Trieste Trasporti for the Italian side and Slovenske Železnice for Slovenia) but also many other stakeholders as the Autonomous Region Friuli Venezia Giulia, the regional Department of Trenitalia, RFI and the Municipality of Trieste.
The signature of the agreement and the adoption of the regional act to approve the tariff scheme represent the last steps of the institutional dialogue coordinated by CEI during more than one year and which led to solve technical, administrative and organizational obstacles for launching this service. Thanks to the agreement, a new cross-border integrated connection between Trieste and Ljubljana will be activated from 1st March 2019 to 31st August 2019, and will allow users to travel – with a single ticket and through a seamless solution – by bus from the centre of Trieste (Oberdan Square) to the railway station of Villa Opicina and then to the centre of Ljubljana using the trains operated by Slovenian railways.
The integrated ticket (which cost is 8 euro) will be available for purchase online from 1st March on the Slovenian railways website (www.slo-zeleznice.si).
From the left: Roberto Gerin (Trieste Trasporti) and Nelson Šorgo (Slovenske Železnice)
From the left: Enzo Volponi (Autonomous Region Friuli Venezia Giulia), Massimiliano Angelotti (Autonomous Region Friuli Venezia Giulia), Roberto Gerin (Trieste Trasporti), Nelson Šorgo (Slovenske Železnice), Paolo Dileno (CEI), Michele Scozzai (Trieste Trasporti), Marjetka Uršić (Slovenske Železnice).
