Air India said in a statement on Aug 22 that it plans to sign an intermodal interline agreement with AccesRail, an IATA travel partner, to increase connectivity options for Air India guests across European cities without airports.

According to the airline, the agreement will allow customers to travel on a single intermodal ticket to around 100 cities and towns in Austria, Belgium, Germany, and other locations via its European gateways of Amsterdam, Birmingham, London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Milan, and Vienna.

AccesRail’s network of rail and bus operators that are available under its agreement with Air India include Avanti West Coast (UK), Great Western Railways (UK), London North Eastern Railways (UK), National Express (UK), Trenitalia (Italy), ÖBB Austrian Railways (Austria), SNCB Belgian Railways, and Thalys (Netherlands/Belgium).

According to the statement, customers will have the same baggage allowance on these rail or bus operator services as they do on Air India flights.

"One of our key priorities in the ongoing, comprehensive transformation of Air India is the expansion of our global network." This collaboration with AccesRail not only allows us to provide our guests with easy access to an expanded network of destinations across Europe, but it also bridges connectivity gaps between India and Europe," said Nipun Aggarwal, Chief Commercial & Transformation Officer at Air India.