New Private Train Operator to Start Services in Romania
A new private train operator will start running services in Romania alongside national railway company CFR when the new timetable comes into effect.
New private train operator in Romania
The private rail company Ferotrafic TFI will begin operating InterCity train services in Romania when the 2026 timetable comes into effect on 14 December 2025.
According to Romanian rail news website Club Feroviar, Ferotrafic TFI will introduce a pair of InterCity trains on the Bucharest-Suceava route.
With a travel time of 5 hours and 36 minutes, these trains will be faster than CFR’s competing services, which take between 5 hours 52 minutes and 6 hours 28 minutes on the same route.
Ferotrafic TFI will also introduce a pair of InterCity trains on the Bucharest-Iași route, which takes 5 hours and 28 minutes according to the timetable.
Trains of Softrans and Regio Călători, two other private Romanian operators, at Bucharest Gara de Nord. ©AndyBTravels
Summer trains
Ferotrafic TFI will also start to operate InterCity trains to the Romanian coast in the 2026 summer season.
Among the seasonal routes planned by the company are Suceava-Constanța-Mangalia, Iași-Constanța-Mangalia, and Bucharest-Constanța.
Rolling stock
To operate its new InterCity services in Romania, Ferotrafic TFI will use second-hand trains acquired from Luxembourg and Israel.
This includes Z2 electric multiple unit (EMU) trainsets from CFL, Luxembourg’s national railway company, where they were classified as CFL Class 2000.
These trains, built between 1990 and 1992, have been modernised and refurbished by Marub SA in Brașov, Romania.
Ferotrafic TFI has also purchased IC3 diesel multiple unit (DMU) trainsets from Israel Railways, although their delivery has been delayed due to the war in Gaza.
These DMU trainsets, known for their distinctive rubber noses, were originally built in Denmark, where they are also in service with DSB, the Danish national rail operator.
A Danish IC3 train. ©Johan Rosemynthe/DSB
Other private operators in Romania
Ferotrafic TFI will be far from the first private operator to run trains in Romania, as Astra Trans Carpatic, Regio Călători, InterRegional Călători, Softrans, and Transferoviar Călători (TFC) also operate services in the country.
AndyB says: “Romania is at the forefront of market liberalisation, with the private commercial services sector set to expand under the new timetable through the introduction of the new operator Ferotrafic TFI.
“As I discussed previously in my Substack article about private operators, they can greatly enhance the rail sector, as competition encourages lower fares and higher-quality services.”
