MONITORING THE EFFECTS OF THE THALYS HIGH SPEED TRAIN

In June 1996, the Thalys high speed train, connecting Amsterdam and Paris, was put into service. This new connection has brought about major improvements in travel time, comfort and service, and is more competitive than other modes such as car and air than the conventional train connection. Based on cross section surveys that were held before and after the introduction of Thalys, this paper assesses the effects of Thalys on travel volumes by various modes and mode shares. In order to separate the effects of the Thalys from autonomous developments in the international travel market, the paper includes analyses of developments in the population, economy, international travel and other (i.e. not concerning Thalys) supply factors. Based on our analyses, it can be concluded that Thalys has achieved a considerable increase in the amount of train traffic between the Netherlands and France. On the relations Netherlands-Belgium and Netherlands-Great Britain, Thalys did not invoke an increase in train traffic although there is an increase in train traffic between the Netherlands and Belgium due to lower fares for the conventional train. The increase in train traffic volumes has led to a decrease in the share of air traffic, without stopping the increase in the absolute number of air passengers. This is due to the autonomous trend of increasing overall mobility , which is unlikely to change in the coming years. Given that travel time is an important motivation for mode choice, the current study suggests that there is a considerable growth potential for Thalys in the context of substantial travel time reductions that are planned in the coming years. For the covering abstract see IRRD E102404.

• Record URL:
  http://abstracts.aetransport.org/conference/index/id/4
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/086050316X
• Corporate Authors:

  PTRC Education and Research Services Limited

  Glenthorne House, Hammersmith Grove
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• Authors:
  • Ettema, D
  • COHN, N
  • SAVELBERG, F
• Conference:
  • RAIL. PROCEEDINGS OF SEMINAR G HELD AT THE EUROPEAN TRANSPORT CONFERENCE, LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY, ENGLAND, 14-18 SEPTEMBER 1998. VOLUME P426
• Publication Date: 1998-9

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 113-24

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Before and after studies; Conferences; Demand; High speed ground transportation; High speed vehicles; Intercity transportation; Interviewing; Modal split; Public transit; Railroad transportation; Speed; Travel; Travel time; Trip length
• Uncontrolled Terms: Decreases
• Geographic Terms: Belgium; France; Netherlands
• ITRD Terms: 9148: Before and after study; 8008: Belgium; 8525: Conference; 9009: Decrease; 285: Demand (econ); 8036: France; 1163: High speed; 388: Inter urban; 9147: Interview; 698: Journey; 697: Journey time; 675: Modal split; 8078: Netherlands; 744: Public transport; 1173: Rail bound transport
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Public Transportation; Railroads;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00779135
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Transport Research Laboratory
• ISBN: 0-86050-316-X
• Files: ITRD
• Created Date: Dec 7 1999 12:00AM