As of today, the railway service connecting Villa Opicina with Rijeka will operate until the end of September, with departure from Trieste (Villa Opicina) at 7.50 am and return from Rijeka at 6.25 pm.
The train will stop and pick up passengers at the railway stations Opatija Matulji and Šapjane in Croatia and in Ilirska Bistrica, Pivka, Divača and Sežana, Slovenia.
The train running along this line is an electric multiple unit owned by the Slovenian state railway company, it has 235 seats and room for bicycles and prams, and is also suitable for people with disabilities.
The price of a ticket from Villa Opicina to Rijeka is €8 and a return ticket costs €16.
Tickets for children aged 6-12 cost €4 and children under 6 can travel for free. Bicycle transport is charged €5, and the train also offers free WiFi access.
The Croatian Railways (HŽ) says that the new line will connect rural, peripheral and cross-border areas of Italy, Slovenia and Croatia and is one of six pilot activities implemented as part of the SUSTANCE project, which is part of the Interreg Central Europe transnational cooperation project.
As part of the project, HŽ Passenger Transport has been expanding its website with information promoting ecologically acceptable travel and active vacations and the unique experience of combining train and bicycle travel in Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. The website will provide information on bicycle transport, cycle lanes and cycle-friendly accommodation and events in Croatia, Slovenia and Italy.
€2 m SUSTANCE project with eight partners from Croatia, Italy, Slovenia and Hungary
The SUSTANCE project covers eight partners from Croatia, Italy, Slovenia and Hungary, the main goal being to improve public transport connectivity between sparsely populated rural, peripheral and cross-border areas and urban areas where transport hubs are located, with emphasis on better public railway transport services in cross-border areas.
The project also puts emphasis on the development of innovative ICT solutions for better passenger mobility in Central Europe by taking a bottom-up approach.
The total value of the project is €2 million, of which 80% is covered from the Interreg Central Europe transnational cooperation programme, and it will last until the end of March 2026.
Representatives of the project partners, the Slovenian Infrastructure Ministry, the Croatian Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure and representatives of regional and local government units from Croatia, Slovenia and Italy spoke about the project in Rijeka.
A wish was expressed for a train service to be introduced to connect Rijeka and Trieste to enable Croatian passengers to make day-long excursions to Trieste, as currently the train to Trieste departs from Rijeka in the evening hours.
HŽ Passenger Transport CEO Željko Ukić said the project was intended primarily for tourism purposes and tourist arrivals and also had to do with the green transition and reduction of CO2 emissions.
We'll see how the project turns out and whether it will be successful, further cooperation will depend on that, he said.