Rail capacity management

Abstract

Rail has a key role to play in making transport more efficient and sustainable in the EU and elsewhere. However, increasing passenger and cargo volumes require investment in infrastructure, and also more efficient track capacity management. This issue of Network Industries Quarterly focuses on the capacity dimension of railway infrastructure, and in particular on how to increase capacity for both passenger and freight railway undertakings (RUs), as availability of reliable railway infrastructure capacity is a condition for the much-needed modal shift from road (and air) to rail. Needless to say, capacity management takes place in a situation of growing competition for track and it is necessary to ensure non-discriminatory treatment of competing RUs when it comes to track availability and usage. Somewhat paradoxically, this gives the infrastructure manager (IM) an important and more active role than was previously the case, and at the same time requires an independent regulator to not only superv