The Hungarian Minister of Economy and Transport, Márton Nagy, has announced that the Government decided to build Budapest air-rail link estimated at EUR 1 billion.
The minister said that the new railway line will link Ferenc Liszt International Airport with the Western Railway Station (the Budapest Nyugati station) and together with this project, a new cargo airport will be also constructed.
The rail investment will be carried out in a concession method meaning that the governmemt would not pay once the entire project, but during the period. A concession tender is expected to be issued later this year and would expect to attract domestic and foreign investors. Works are expected to start within one and a half year.
Government’s plan is to build a new railway line from the airport to the Kőbánya district (13 km north of the airport) and from here it will be connected to the national railway network to ensure train connection to the Budapest Nyugati station, located in the city centre, on the Pest side of the Danube which has metro connection through the Line 3 (Blue Line) at Nyugati pályaudvar.
Currently, the airport has a rail connection through the Ferihegy train station located near the Terminal 2, with trains running to and from the Nyugati railway station. Nearly 100 trains per day, including InterCity services, provide easy access to and from the city in less than half an hour. This line is also operated by InterRegio and Szeged Napfény InterCity trains running between Ferihegy railway station and Nyugati railway station.
The Budapest Nyugati train station is currently under design phase as part of Budapest rail node programme. The plans include the construction of a new 13-track two-storey station, and an underground 8-track station which will also serve trains coming from Buda in the planned Danube railway tunnel.
Feasibility study
According to a feasibility study completed in December 2016, the new line was planned to be built on a new route between the Kőbánya-Kispest and Monor stations along the railway line 100a – one of country’s most important mainlines, running from Budapest Nyugati station to Szolnok, passing through Cegléd.
The 100 km double track electrified line is also part of the Budapest–Szolnok–Debrecen–Záhony rail corridor (Line 100). Budapest – Cegléd – Szolnok railway line is operated daily by 50 freight trains and 210 passenger trains transporting more than 11 million passengers per year and is the busiest suburban rail connection in Hungary, especially for commuters between Budapest and nearby towns.
By branching off from the main railway line 100a, which is part of the TEN-T network, and then running it parallel to it, one of the busiest suburban railway lines in Hungary will have the opportunity to further expand capacity. By separating long-distance and suburban traffic, journey time can be reduced, regularity can be improved, and reliability can be increased in both passenger and freight transport.
According to the study, the double-track line would be 27 km long and will be suitable for speeds of 120 – 160 km/h. The study also included the construction of an underground four-track railway station at the airport.
Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport, the rail service for the airport was planned on the new route between the Kőbánya-Kispest and Monor stations of railway line 100a, with the creation of a railway station passing through the airport, also suitable for receiving airport shuttle services.
The Budapest air-rail link will answer transport demand, as the Ferenc Liszt Airport records significant passenger and goods traffic with currently more than 40 airlines offer around 200 holiday destinations, which clearly indicates that the country’s international tourist accessibility has increased significantly. Passenger traffic is also growing dynamically, with 17.6 million passengers being registered in 2024 and by 2030 it will exceed 20 million people.
Passenger traffic increased in the first months of 2025, with 1.3 million passengers registered in January and 1.7 million passengers in April and significant increase is expected by the end of this year. To meet travel demand and expand transport connections with the airport, “we decided to establish an accelerated railway connection between the Western Railway station in Budapest and the Ferenc Liszt International Airport,” minister Márton Nagy said.
According to the Hungarian Government, passenger traffic of Budapest Airport has increased by an average of 14% in the recent years, and the development of the airport and its transport connections is essential.
The Budapest air-rail link will deliver passengers better and connected services and increased capacity at the airport, which “is essential, especially the development of the terminal, which would allow simultaneous service and faster passenger flow,” the minister underlined.
In addition, the construction of the new cargo airport is necessary because the Budapest Airport is slowly reaching the maximum limit of its annual turnover of 400-450 thousand tonnes per year and, with the increase of passenger traffic, there is no longer a free time zone for air cargo traffic.
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