Special Statement about Brightline in the USA
22 September 2023: today, the privately owned passenger rail operator Brightline will start regular, scheduled Intercity services between the two largest transport hubs in Florida: Miami and Orlando.
ALLRAIL congratulates Brightline on the milestone that it has achieved today and hopes that this will be the start of a new era of privately owned operators playing a major role in the US Intercity rail market.
Despite All The Taxpayer Funding, Some Rail Services in Europe Are Still Not Easily Available For Passengers – MDMS Is The Answer
To protect our climate and grow cross-border rail, let’s stop restricting what consumers see - all rail tickets must be bookable at all rail ticket vendors.
MDMS Proposal: ALL Policy Options Must Be Back on the Table
Recently, a EU Commission representative announced that ALL policy options were back at the table for the upcoming proposal on Mutldimodal Digital Mobility Services (MDMS), especially regarding ticket re-selling and the scope (cross-border journeys).
We welcome this announcement, but we also call on the EU Commission to ensure that ALL policy options are back on the table, including a mandate on large MDMS (e.g. the rail incumbents' in-house ticket retail channels) to show and sell the offers of willing rail operators on FRAND terms.
Evidence Shows There Could Be 50% Modal Shift To Rail If Competition Were Introduced Onto More Long-Distance Routes in Europe
A new report highlighting the significant potential of introducing competition on European long-distance routes currently served by a single operator. The report, conducted by Silverrail, reveals that this move could lead to an estimated average modal shift of 50% from planes to trains. This shift would generate an additional €1 billion in revenue for the rail sector and reduce CO2 emissions by over 2.4 million tonnes. However, it is unfortunate that many Member States seem to be influenced by lobbying efforts favoring the status quo. A different approach is now needed.
Cartel Office Ruling Shows that EU Transport Commissioner Vălean’s New MDMS Plans Will Be Anti-Competitive
Last week, the German Federal Cartel Office ruled that certain practices and contractual clauses in rail ticketing imposed by the dominant rail operator Deutsche Bahn (DB) are unlawful and anti-competitive, representing an abuse of market power.
The German Federal Cartel Office's ruling contrasts with EU Commissioner Vălean's U-turn in her new plans regarding the upcoming initiative on Multimodal Digital Mobility Services (MDMS), which will unfortunately allow incumbent rail operators to remain abusing their market power.