10 czerwca 2022 u Prezesa Urzędu Transportu Kolejowego zostało złożonych 14 powiadomień o nowych usługach komercyjnych, które mają być prowadzone przez przewoźnika świadczącego równocześnie głównie przewozy o charakterze służby publicznej (PSO).

Do połowy marca 2023, Urząd opublikował łącznie 11 decyzji wraz z najważniejszą z całego pakietu wniosków. Ostatnia decyzja dotycząca połączeń w relacji Kołobrzeg–Przemyśl Główny–Kołobrzeg jest jednak szczególna, bowiem dotyczy zawoalowanej przez przewoźnika, najbardziej lukratywnej na polskim rynku kolejowym trasy Gdynia Główna - Kraków Główny - Gdynia Główna, na której PKP Intercity uzyskało możliwość prowadzenia 16 par pociągów. Po raz kolejny państwowe pociągi komercyjne PKP Intercity nie zagrażają pociągom dotowanym, natomiast podobne, mniej liczne pociągi przewoźników komercyjnych stanowią zagrożenie wręcz niewyobrażalne.

On 10th June 2022, 14 applications for new commercially driven services were filed by the Polish long-distance state-owned rail incumbent PKP Intercity with the President of the Polish rail regulator UTK.

UTK always acts astonishingly fast for PKP Intercity: by mid-March 2023, UTK had already published a total of 11 decisions. However, UTK’s latest decision on the long-distance services between Kołobrzeg and Przemyśl route is unique, as it concerns the most lucrative commercially driven route in Poland, between Gdynia and Kraków, for which UTK has allowed PKP Intercity to run 16 pairs of trains.

So - yet again - we witness the double standard of the Polish rail regulator UTK. It decides that state-owned incumbent PKP Intercity's commercially driven trains pose no threat to subsidised PSO trains on the same route, whilst similar but less frequent commercially driven services applied for by independent operators allegedly pose a huge threat to PSO services.

Rather than continuing to decide against independent operators, UTK now needs to be investigated itself - for consistently biased behaviour in favour of PKP Intercity.

This week, the American Public Transport Association (APTA)'s High-Speed Rail Seminar event in Washington DC will be an excellent opportunity to highlight the large net positive benefit of high-speed rail for the US economy and society. However, in order to get there, the usage of the new high-speed rail infrastructure should be maximized. This can only be achieved by promoting competition between different high-speed operators from the beginning of operations.

Cette semaine, une conférence internationale sur le train à grande vitesse se tient à Marrakech. Cette conférence illustre les efforts déployés par le Maroc pour s'imposer comme le leader de l'Afrique et du monde arabe dans ce domaine.

Cependant, nous constatons qu'au Maroc, seul le transport ferroviaire de voyageurs demeure sous le contrôle d'un seul opérateur : l'ONCF.

Malheureusement, l'expérience d'autres pays montre que ce modèle ne permettra pas de maximiser les avantages du train à grande vitesse. Au contraire, c'est l'ouverture du marché et la concurrence entre les différents opérateurs qui permettront d'optimiser l'utilisation du train à grande vitesse pour l'ensemble de la société marocaine.

This week, an international conference on high-speed rail is being held in Marrakech. This conference illustrates Morocco's efforts to establish itself as the leader in Africa and the Arab world in this field.

However, we note that in Morocco, only passenger rail transport remains under the control of a single operator: the ONCF.

Unfortunately, experience in other countries shows that this model will not maximise the benefits of high-speed rail. On the contrary, it is the opening up of the market and competition between the different operators that will optimise the use of high-speed rail for the whole of Moroccan society.

24 February 2023: Today marks one year since the start of Russia's brutal invasion, and the Global Ukraine Rail Task Force pledges to continue its efforts to strengthen the Ukraine Rail sector. We look back with a sense of disbelief at the horrors the people of Ukraine have had to endure this past year. At the same time, we recognise with great pride the bravery courage and endurance Ukrainians have demonstrated. They have inspired the world as they continue to overcome all odds.

Searching and buying tickets for trips combining different means of transport is difficult in the EU. That is why the upcoming proposal on Multimodal Digital Mobility Services (MDMS) must better integrate ground public transport and rail services to achieve seamless multimodal passenger transport, delivering on the CO₂ reduction goals in the EU Green Deal.

Therefore, it is astonishing that the least sustainable transport mode – aviation – is not only involved, but it is driving the agenda. Not only that: the first multimodal products primarily serve The Wealthy. MDMS urgently needs to reconsider its purpose and who it is meant to serve.

A meeting between lessors in AERRL and independent railway operators in ALLRAIL leads to a new PLEDGE to actively contribute to help launch new commercial rail offers for passengers through maximum availability of passenger rolling stock.  At the end of the discussion, it appears that the market forces must remember the essential conditions necessary for the good development of the offer and thus of the market share of rail.

Trafikverket bör ta ansvar för den av SJ nyligen aviserade offensiven mot det privatägda järnvägsföretaget Snälltåget. Det svenska statliga järnvägsföretaget SJ, har nämligen meddelat att man kommer att kopiera Snälltågets nattåg mellan Stockholm – Berlin, genom att förlänga sin, av svenska skattebetalare subventionerade nattågstrafik Stockholm – Hamburg till Berlin. Detta utgör en olaglig korssubventionering.

The Swedish Transport Authority Trafikverket should take responsibility for the recently announced offensive against the privately owned operator Snälltåget by the Swedish state-owned rail incumbent SJ. Namely, SJ has announced that it will compete with Snälltåget´s commercially driven night train between Stockholm and Berlin by extending its taxpayer-funded Stockholm – Hamburg night train service to Berlin. This represents an illegal cross-subsidy.

Dimanche dernier (22 janvier) fut célébré le 60ème anniversaire du traité d'amitié entre la France et l'Allemagne. Les deux pays font partie intégrante de l'Union européenne et du marché unique européen. Il est donc surprenant que leurs deux opérateurs ferroviaires publics marquent cet évènement en créant conjointement un nouveau monopole de trains à grande vitesse.

Four days ago, on Sunday 22 January, we celebrated the 60th Anniversary of the treaty of friendship between France and Germany. Both countries are an integral part of the EU and the European single market. Therefore, it is rather odd that their two state-owned rail incumbents are marking this anniversary with a new joint high speed rail monopoly.

Vor vier Tagen, am Sonntag, den 22. Januar, haben wir den 60. Jahrestag des Freundschaftsvertrags zwischen Deutschland und Frankreich gefeiert. Beide Länder sind ein fester Bestandteil der EU und des europäischen Binnenmarktes. Daher ist es etwas seltsam, dass die beiden Staatsbahnen diesen Jahrestag mit einem neuen gemeinsamen Bahnmonopol begehen. 

The study contracted by Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking (EU-RAIL) in collaboration with the Alliance of Passenger Rail New Entrants in Europe (ALLRAIL), the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) and the European Rail Supply Industry (UNIFE) analyses the impact of the European High-Speed Rail (HSR) Network connecting the Capitals of Europe and the main European cities and regions. The study confirms that investing in a comprehensive European HSR network delivers added value to European society and massively reduces the environmental footprint of European passenger transport, creating a sustainable and equitable mobility.

Today, Polish incumbent PKP Intercity increased the price of tickets for all of its train services. Passengers travelling with PKP Express InterCity or with the highspeed Pendolino service (EIP) will have to pay 17.4% and 17.8% more respectively for their journey.

The reasons given by PKP Intercity for such an increase are, allegedly, inflation and rising operating costs due to higher electricity prices. However, the state-owned operator chose not to identify the real cause: market closure and complete lack of competition.

Od dziś, państwowy operator kolejowy PKP Intercity podnosi ceny biletów na wszystkie świadczone usługi kolejowe. Za podróż pociągami PKP Express InterCity lub Pendolino (EIP), pasażerowie będą musieli zapłacić odpowiednio o 17,4% i 17,8% więcej.

Państwowy przewoźnik swoją decyzję tłumaczy inflacją oraz wzrostem kosztów działalności, które wynikają z wyższych cen energii elektrycznej. Jednakże PKP Intercity postanowiło nie dostrzec prawdziwej przyczyny wzrostu cen biletów: zamknięcia rynku kolejowego oraz zakazu konkurencji na polskich torach.

A short time after the beginning of Russia’s brutal aggression against Ukraine, the Global Ukraine Rail Task Force set up a targeted donation campaign to help the Iron Family (the workers of the Ukrainian rail sectors) and their families.

In the course of several months, more than 100.000€ were collected thanks to the generosity of the donors. The proceeds will be used to purchase 5000 food packages that will be shipped and delivered to railway workers and their families at the frontline and newly liberated territories of Ukraine. Because of recurrent supply issues due to the war, Ukrainians at the frontline go sometimes hungry. Therefore, food packages are truly vital to their wellbeing.

Recently, Portugal’s Prime Minister Antonio Costa announced plans for a high-speed line between Lisbon and Porto, stressing the importance of connecting the two cities and generating economic growth.

ALLRAIL welcomes this project but highlights, once again, the importance of opening this sector to the competition among operators, fulfilling with the provisions of the EU Law.  

Recentemente, o Primeiro Ministro português António Costa anunciou planos para uma linha de alta velocidade entre Lisboa e Porto, sublinhando a importância de ligar as duas cidades e gerar crescimento económico.

ALLRAIL congratula-se com este projeto, mas salienta, mais uma vez, a importância da abertura deste sector à concorrência entre operadores, cumprindo com as disposições da legislação da UE.  

Privately owned railway operator, ALLRAIL member WESTbahn launched another commercially driven long-distance service in Austria, this time between Vienna and Innsbruck.

Thanks to this new service, passengers wishing to visit the capital of the beautiful region of Austrian Tyrol will also enjoy the benefits of competition between different railway operators on the same route.