Some 8.7 billion rail trips were recorded across the European Union in 2024, equating to around 444.5 billion passenger-kilometres (pkm) during the year, new data from Eurostat has revealed.
As the data showed, Germany and France accounted for the largest share of rail passenger transport activity, recording 109.1 billion and 107.3 billion passenger-kilometres respectively. Italy ranked third with 55.9 billion passenger-kilometres.
At the other end of the scale, six EU countries recorded fewer than one billion passenger-kilometres in 2024: Lithuania and Estonia each recorded 0.4 billion passenger-kilometres, followed by Luxembourg with 0.6 billion, while Latvia and Greece each registered 0.7 billion. Slovenia recorded 0.9 billion passenger-kilometres.
Rail usage per capita
When adjusted for population size, however, Luxembourg had the highest rail usage rate in the EU, with 46.2 rail passengers per capita. Austria followed in second place with 35.6 passengers per capita, ahead of Denmark at 35.2, Eurostat noted.
The lowest rail usage ratios per capita were recorded in Greece at 1.4, Lithuania at 1.8 and Bulgaria at 3.3.
‘In 2024, EU rail passenger transport hit its highest level in years,’ Eurostat noted, adding that rail passenger transport performance across the European Union increased by 5.8% during the year, compared with the previous year. Read more here.
Relative to population, the highest ratio of rail passengers per capita in the EU countries in 2024 was recorded in:
— EU_Eurostat (@EU_Eurostat) May 14, 2026
🇱🇺Luxembourg (46.2)
🇦🇹Austria (35.6)
🇩🇰Denmark (35.2)
Lowest in:
🇬🇷Greece (1.4)
🇱🇹Lithuania (1.8)
🇧🇬Bulgaria (3.3)
Read more 👉 https://t.co/V8txCAgckz pic.twitter.com/mPoz2A72k5
