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Intercity Trains |
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In Europe, many long-distance inter-urban trains are operated under the InterCity (Intercity, or often simply IC) brand. The term InterCity originated with British Rail's InterCity sector, but it went out of official use in the UK following privatisation. The UK service became very popular in Britain in the 1970s thanks in part to an advertising campaign fronted by Jimmy Savile.
The principal network of international express trains in continental Europe is called EuroCity, to distinguish it from the national InterCity networks and to indicate its better support for international journeys even though some IC trains also cross borders.
High-speed railways have particularly few stops. The German high-speed train service was named InterCityExpress indicating its evolution from older InterCity trains. Other high-speed lines include the TGV (France), AVE (Spain) and Treno Alta Velocità (Italy).
In Great Britain, the inter-city rail links are now operated by a number of private companies such as Virgin Trains and First Great Western. In Ireland, the inter-city rail network is maintained by Iarnród Éireann and Northern Ireland Railways.
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