Drawing with London Bridge, Leipzig Hauptbahnhof has been named the 10th best train station in Europe, according to the latest Railway Station Index from the Consumer Choice Centre.

The 2024 Railway Station Index by CCC

Each year, the Consumer Choice Centre (CCC) analyses Europe’s 50 largest railway stations to determine which are the most convenient and passenger-friendly. Each of the stations is rated according to the following factors:

• Passenger numbers
• Operating hours of ticketing offices and whether tickets can be purchased via mobile phone
• Diversity of public transport tickets (such as student, pensioner and group passes)
• Waiting times at the station
• Frequency of delayed trains
• Visibility of station information
• Presence of elevators and escalators, and wheelchair and toilet accessibility
• Number of shops, restaurants, takeaways and lounges
• Connections to international and local public transport, and the number of rail companies to choose from
• Access to free internet and ride-sharing or taxi services

Each station was given a score in each category, with their total score across all categories used to place them in the ranking. The maximum score possible was 118 points.

What are the best European train stations in 2024?

Out on top, according to CCC and of little surprise to anyone, is a Swiss railway station, namely Zurich HB. The station takes the title for the third consecutive year, with a score of 101 points. It was praised for its average wait time of 1,28 minutes and train punctuality - at the station in Zurich, just 6,28 percent of services are delayed.

Switzerland didn’t stop there, with Bern taking second place. Utrecht Centraal rounded out the top three spots, moving up from fifth place in the previous ranking.

Leipzig Hauptbahnhof, an oasis in the DB desert

“Of 21 German stations, only one made it into the top ten - Leipzig Main Station,” the CCC report wrote, but added little information as to why the station deserved the title.

Aside from Leipzig’s mediocre success in drawing 10th place with London Bridge station, a German perspective draws attention to the other end of the table, the train stations that the CCC named the worst in Europe in 2024. The number of German stations in the top 10 has gone from five in 2022 to two in 2023 and one in 2024. 

What’s more, the worst of the 50 largest stations were Berlin Ostkreuz, Hauptbahnhof in Bremen and Berlin Zoologischer Garten. Ostkreuz in Berlin was given the worst rating because of its high waiting times, the fact that over 40 percent of services at the station are late and the relative lack of facilities.

“German stations continue to face serious hurdles,” the CCC wrote, pointing out that major failures at Deutsche Bahn were further exposed on the international stage this summer, as millions of football fans travelled around Germany for the Euro 2024.

The CCC’s ranking coincides with an announcement from German Transport Minister Volker Wissing that Deutsche Bahn must improve punctuality and simultaneously make cuts.

Wissing has said Deutsche Bahn bosses have until 2027 to develop a services and finance improvement plan and demanded that quarterly improvement updates be issued to the Federal Ministry for Transport in the meantime.

10 best and worst train stations in Europe 2024

In all, here are the 10 best stations in Europe, according to the CCC:

• 1. Zurich HB, Switzerland
• 2. Bern, Switzerland
• 3. Utrecht Centraal, the Netherlands
• 4. Paris Gare du Nord, France
• 5. Paris Gare de Lyon, France
• 6. Paris Gare Montparnasse, France
• 7. Vienna HB, Austria
• 8. Rome Termini, Italy
• 9. Paris Gare Saint-Lazare 
• =10. London Bridge, United Kingdom
• =10. Leipzig Hbf, Germany

And here are the worst 10 stations on the continent:

• 1. Berlin Ostkreuz, Germany
• 2. Bremen Hbf, Germany
• 3. Berlin Zoologischer Garten, Germany
• 4. Florence Santa Maria Novella, Italy
• 5. Paris Châtelet–Les Halles, France
• =6. Paris Haussmann-Saint-Lazare, France
• =6. Rome Tiburtina, Italy
• 7. Pasing in Munich, Germany
• 8. Vienna Meidling, Austria
• 9. Berlin Südkreuz, Germany
• 10. Altona in Hamburg, Germany

For more information, check out the CCC website.

Thumb image credit: Markus Mainka / Shutterstock.com