Press Release
Brussels, January 10, 2025
FEPORT together with AERRL, CEFIC, CEPI, CLECAT, COCERAL, ECG, ERFA, ESC, EUORFER, UIP and UIRR have co-signed an open letter concerning the trilogue negotiations on the Railway Infrastructure Capacity Regulation.
The open letter underscores the critical importance of rail freight in supporting European supply chains and the broader economy. Despite its potential, rail freight faces significant challenges, particularly due to the fragmented management of infrastructure across national networks and the dominance of passenger rail priorities.
To address these challenges and move towards a Single European Railway Area, the letter highlights key proposals, including:
1. Harmonised and Binding Frameworks: Ensuring European frameworks for capacity management are binding and transparent.
2. Incentives for Efficient Capacity Use: Introducing commercial conditions that encourage capacity allocation focused on cross-border freight services.
3. Integrated Train Path Management: Treating train paths holistically, especially for cross-border routes involving multiple infrastructure managers.
4. Socio-Economic and Environmental Criteria: Applying objective and harmonised European criteria for capacity allocation to improve cross-border traffic management.
5. Governance and Performance KPIs: Establishing a governance structure with key performance indicators, such as punctuality and border-crossing efficiency, to drive improvements.
6. Enhanced Stakeholder Involvement: Granting a decisive role to capacity applicants through a Rail User Platform for continuous consultation.
7. Improving Upon Existing Frameworks: Ensuring the new regulation improves on the current Rail Freight Corridor framework without any regression.
We hope that the above mentioned crucial points will be considered by the institutional stakeholders involved in the trilogue negotiations.
Signatories:
- AERRL - Association of European Rail Rolling Stock Lessors
- CEFIC - The European Chemical Industry Council
- CEPI - Confederation of European Paper Industries
- CLECAT - European Association for Forwarding, Transport, Logistics and Customs Services
- COCERAL - European Association of Trade in Cereals, Oilseeds, Rice, Pulses, Olive Oil, Oils and Fats, Animal Feed, and Agrosupply
- ECG - The Association of European Vehicle Logistics
- ERFA - European Rail Freight Association
- ESC - European Shippers Council
- EUROFER - The European Steel Association
- FEPORT - The Federation of European Private Port Companies and Terminals
- UIP - International Union of Wagon Keepers
- UIRR - International Union for Road-Rail Combined Transport
For further details, please refer to the attached open letter.
For more information, please contact:
Ms. Lamia Kerdjoudj, Secretary General of FEPORT
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