Switzerland is often ranked the best when it comes to Europe as a whole, but what about the EU separately?

Zürich

A recent debate was sparked after Spain's transport minister claimed Spain has the second most punctual mid- and long-distance trains in Europe. While Switzerland, a non-EU country, is often cited for its reliable trains, European Commission data shows that the Netherlands actually leads the EU, with 88% of its long-distance and high-speed trains arriving on time. Spain ranks fifth, ahead of Germany, Italy, and France, with the EU average for punctuality at 87%.

The Commission defines punctual trains as those arriving within five minutes of schedule, but notes that definitions can vary between countries. For local and regional trains, Latvia, Estonia, Austria, Finland, and Denmark have the best punctuality records. These findings highlight the variation in train service reliability across Europe.

Which EU country has the most punctual trains?

Which EU country has the most punctual trains? A debate has erupted online after Spain's transport minister, Óscar Puente, claimed that his country has the second most punctual mid and long distance trains in Europe. It's true that non-EU member Switzerland consistently ranks as having some of the most reliable trains on the continent, according to various reports and travel companies that rank services based on their own criteria. The European Commission, however, also collects its own data on the punctuality of EU countries' train services, although it notes that different definitions of punctuality apply in different member states, making it hard to fully compare each country. Nevertheless, according to data published in July, the Netherlands had the most punctual long-distance and high-speed passenger train services in the EU, with 88% of its trains arriving on time in 2022. The European Commission classifies punctual as trains arriving with a five-minute delay at most. The Netherlands was followed by Belgium, also with 88%, but brought down slightly in the ranking due to its results in previous years, and Bulgaria with 87%. Denmark came fourth and, yes, Spain came in fifth, so it does rank as having some of the most punctual long-distance train services in the EU. And it does outrank the German, Italian and French services, as Puente suggested. The EU average for high-speed and long-distance trains that arrived on time was 87%, according to the Commission. It's a different story for local and regional trains, though. Here, Latvia, Estonia, Austria, Finland and Denmark make up the top five most punctual train services.

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