EU railways

41% of EU railway lines have 2 or more tracks

Published

1 month ago

March 12, 2026

In 2024, 40.8% of the EU railway network had 2 or more parallel tracks, an improvement from 31.8% in 1990. Multiple parallel tracks enable more efficient and safer traffic on railway lines, increasing flexibility and reducing the effects of any disturbances.

The total length of the railway network in the EU was 201,314 km, a decrease of 8.7% compared with 1990 (220 420 km).

However, there was a considerable increase in the share of electrified railway lines over this period with a 57.6% share in 2024 compared with 39.9% in 1990.

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Source dataset: rail_if_line_tr

Among EU countries, higher density of railway network can be found in the high population areas with relatively high volumes of freight transport. Czechia had the highest railway network density in 2024 with 123.2 metres of railway lines per km2 of land area, ahead of Belgium (118.7 m/km2) and Germany (110 m/km2). The lowest densities were found in Greece (14 m/km2), Finland (19.4 m/km2) and Sweden (26.8 m/km2).

Luxembourg: the only country ‘on track’ with the European Train Control System

The European Train Control System (ETCS) is an effective safety measure to reduce train collision risks through track-based or radio signals. In 2025, according to the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA), Luxembourg was the only country which was fully equipped with ETCS, ahead of Belgium (90.3% of its railway lines) and Denmark (51.6%), while the least equipped countries were Hungary (1.6%), Croatia (3.0%) and Germany and Romania (both 3.2%).

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Source dataset: rail_if_traff