Sweden’s government is pulling the plug on subsidies for the Stockholm–Berlin night train, and SJ isn’t sticking around to operate it on their own dime. The state-owned operator launched the service in September 2022, extended it to Berlin in summer 2023, and now they’re calling it quits by August 31, 2026.
The math is simple. High operating costs make night trains a money pit without government cash. Sweden’s national budget proposal made it clear: no more subsidies for international night rail from 2026. Trafikverket’s public service contract expires July 31, 2026, and SJ will limp through one more month before the final departure.
Sweden’s budget axe falls on international night trains—no subsidies from 2026 means no Stockholm–Berlin sleeper service.
Political priorities shifted. Domestic infrastructure apparently matters more than keeping sleeper cars rolling across borders. So much for European rail dreams—though to be fair, the government may have legitimate budget pressures we’re not seeing.
The service ran 244 nights per year on average, connecting Stockholm to Berlin through Malmö, Denmark, and Hamburg. Summer departures filled up fast. The rest of the year? Not so much. That seasonal imbalance likely explains why the route doesn’t pencil out without subsidies forcing year-round operation. SJ only received support for 190 nights annually despite the tender originally covering 244 nights.
Technical headaches didn’t help either. About 20 departures got canceled annually due to track work. Then there were constant delays from construction in Sweden and Denmark. SJ had planned modernization of restaurant cars that has now been suspended.
On top of that, rolling stock approval delays in Denmark meant passengers initially got stuck with only couchette cars until sleeping cars finally showed up after December 2022. SJ even bought new dining cars and leased fancy Siemens Vectron and Alstom Traxx locomotives for cross-border running. All that modernized equipment barely saw use before Sweden pulled the rug out.
Private operator Snälltåget will keep running during high-demand periods, but forget consistency. They operate without public contracts, which means service when it’s profitable, not when customers might actually need it. That appears to be the new reality from September 2026 onward.
SJ mentioned possible interest in operating Oslo–Copenhagen–Hamburg–Berlin trains someday, subject to market demand and regulatory approval. Translation: don’t hold your breath. Without subsidies propping up operations, night trains remain economically unfeasible—or at least that’s how operators see it. Europe’s rail renaissance hits another speed bump.
