On 12 December 2025, the partners of the EU Erasmus Plus Tour&Rail project gathered at the UIC Headquarters in Paris for the Work Package (WP) 4 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) Coordination Workshop. The meeting, organised by UIC, brought together representatives from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Université Gustave Eiffel (UGE), Università degli Studi di Firenze (UNIFI), Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) and Universidade de Évora (UEVORA). It was held both onsite and online, with the objective of aligning methodologies and indicators for Work Package 4.
The workshop focused on ensuring that there was a common understanding of the indicators developed in WP2 and WP3, as well as their application within WP4. Participants discussed how these indicators could be consistently adapted to assess different low-traffic railway lines with tourism potential, while also maintaining methodological coherence across the project.
A key part of the meeting was the WP4 methodology being presented, which combines the state of railway infrastructure conservation with the tourism potential of the surrounding area. The approach integrates quantitative and qualitative assessments, using numerical ratings, qualitative classifications, and georeferenced mapping. Special attention was given to an area’s capital – covering cultural heritage, landscapes, and protected natural areas, as well as social cohesion, including socio-ecological connectivity and the perceived value of an area by local stakeholders.
The workshop also clarified how fieldwork will be conducted, including the use of shared forms for data collection during site visits, and how results will be translated into comparable indicators. The selected case study lines, including the Douro line in Portugal and the Ulla-Lucca line in Italy, were discussed in relation to their conservation status and tourism appeal.
This work is closely linked to the activities of the UIC Commuter and Regional Trains Group of Experts (CRTS) and the UIC Tourism Group of Experts (TopRail), ensuring consistency with ongoing expert discussions on regional rail services and rail-based tourism at European level.
Finally, partners coordinated the next steps, notably the upcoming field visit to the Douro line in January 2026 and the link with the WP5 activities on governance models.
The meeting marked an important milestone in strengthening the development of a shared analytical framework that supports evidence-based strategies for revitalising low-traffic railway lines through sustainable tourism.
More information about the project is available at www.tourandrail.com.
