Rail Freight Operators Push for Combined Transport Directive Reform

Europe’s intermodal rail freight sector sees the new Railway Infrastructure Capacity Regulation as a chance to improve the reliability and competitiveness of cross-border rail services. However, UIRR argues that the benefits will depend on swift implementation, stronger user representation and parallel reforms to Europe’s outdated Combined Transport framework.

The entry into force of the Railway Infrastructure Capacity Regulation is a turning point for the operators of intermodal freight trains across Europe. For UIRR members, the new Regulation should present the opportunity to secure more and better-quality train paths for their cross-border intermodal freight trains, and to improve the reliability of cross-border rail freight operations, which the sector has long been calling for.

The new Regulation will govern railway infrastructure capacity management during both the annual timetabling process and periods of temporary capacity management along sections of line affected by infrastructure works.

European Railway Platform Set to Represent Infrastructure Users

UIRR has co-signed the joint proposal for the establishment of the European Railway Platform (ERP). The proposal was submitted to the European Commission together with associations representing passenger and freight railway undertakings, service facility managers, competent authorities and other market participants.

The ERP is intended to serve as the collective operational voice of railway users and intermodal stakeholders, acting as a structured component of the new capacity management architecture alongside the European Network of Infrastructure Managers (ENIM), which will be responsible for developing European guidelines and capacity allocation rules.

UIRR urges the European Commission to approve the ERP proposal at the earliest opportunity. According to the organisation, railway infrastructure users must be represented from the very first stages of implementation of the new governance framework.

Timetabling Reform Expected to Improve Cross-Border Operations

The Timetabling Reform (TTR) introduces new digital tools and market-oriented approaches to capacity management that are expected to benefit intermodal services directly by making it easier to obtain usable and reliable train paths and to plan international operations with greater predictability.

Such modernisation is particularly important for intermodal freight, which relies on competitive transit times and coordinated cross-border operations to remain an attractive alternative to road transport.

UIRR Wants Combined Transport Rules Updated

As capacity management rules evolve, UIRR argues that the legal framework governing Combined Transport must also be modernised. The Combined Transport Directive (CTD) dates back to 1992 and remains under revision.

According to the organisation, pairing a modern Capacity Regulation with an outdated Combined Transport Directive would leave a significant gap in European transport policy. UIRR therefore calls for the revision process to be completed quickly and with sufficient ambition.

"The new Capacity Regulation gives intermodal freight operators a real chance to get more and better-quality train paths and a formal voice in how the rules are written. We urge the Commission to approve the ERP without delay and to match this progress with an ambitious revision of the Combined Transport Directive," said UIRR Director General Ralf-Charley Schultze.

_{Source: UIRR}