In Germany, European legislation has led to a liberalisation of the railway market and thus to upheavals in market and company structures. The Deutsche Bahn AG has been divided into a large number of individual companies under the roof of a holding company; the reorientation of existing enterprises and the foundation of a large number of new railway undertakings produced a large variety of providers of transport services. As a result the number of competitors in the market has greatly increased. This development has in turn led to a large number of interfaces and interdependencies between the train operators, the railway infrastructure managers, the purchasers of transport services and the regulatory authorities. Eight years after the realisation of the railway reform in Germany, many new processes are functioning well. However, there is still room for improvement in the organisation of the railway market, which in the years to come will be strongly influenced by the realisation of the two railway packages of the European Union. Discussions have, moreover, shown that there is a strong need for action in areas directly affecting the operation of railways, the everyday business of the railway undertakings. For the covering abstract see ITRD E124693.
Samenvatting