The SNCF Group, an international passenger mobility and freight logistics group, would like to see a regulatory environment conducive to modal shift during the next European term of office, according to its manifesto published on Friday 8 March.
“This would be achieved by focusing on legislative and regulatory initiatives that are conducive to it, and by carrying out projects to improve interoperability at European level and to innovate so that rail becomes the most competitive mode of transport”, the group advocated.
“As the most virtuous mode of transport in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption, rail must become a central lever in transport decarbonisation policies, and must be one of the top priorities of the next European Commission”, said Jean-Pierre Farandou, Chair and CEO of the Group.
He added that without modal shift, the emission reduction targets will not be met. MEPs have also backed this idea in their negotiating position on the draft regulation governing the use of rail infrastructure capacity, which will be put to the vote on Tuesday 12 March (see EUROPE 13363/9).
The SNCF Group also advocates fairer competition between modes of transport and is calling for European funding and new resources for the rail sector to meet the challenges of the ecological transition.
To read the manifesto, go to https://aeur.eu/f/b8d (in French) (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)