On 4 June, CEOs of European rail freight companies and European rail infrastructure managers met in Stockholm. The meeting was the perfect occasion for the CEOs to review the situation of rail freight on the open market. The meeting also focused on how to further improve operational collaboration between rail freight undertakings and infrastructure managers to optimise the opportunities for rail freight in the European Union.

The expectations of rail freight undertakings towards infrastructure managers on freight corridors drove the discussion addressing among other issues the enhanced cooperation between the infrastructure managers and rail freight undertakings aiming at enhancing the customer focus in an open freight market.

CER Executive Director Libor Lochman commented:

Cooperation between infrastructure managers is crucial to increase the attractiveness and efficiency of cross-border rail traffic. This is what CER’s infrastructure managers are doing on a regular basis, whether within the frame of existing regulations or outside. But, more importantly, it is crucial that infrastructure managers and railway operators talk to and understand each other. CER is looking forward to this discussion.

UIC Director General Jean-Pierre Loubinoux stated:

UIC has been monitoring the development of rail freight corridors since the entry in force of regulation 913/2010. As the international technical cooperation platform bringing together the entire railway community –operators as well as infrastructure managers- UIC plays a key role to ensure the overall coherence of the rail system and optimisation of international operations in particular at interfaces. UIC is continuously committed with its partners to promoting innovation in the rail sector and harmonisation in the technical, operational and administrative fields in partnership with competent bodies such as OTIF or CIT, to better benefit of rail freight operators and infrastructure managers.