Brussels, 31/05/2005 (Agence Europe) - Nearly two-thirds of rail service provicers consider that liberalisation of cross-border rail transport is not progressing as it should. This is the result of an ad hoc survey by the communications consultancy company, PLATO Kommunikation, amongst nearly 30 companies from this service sector within the EU. Over half the companies consider that their access to the railway systems of other EU Member States is bad or very bad, and around 60% expect the third railway package to improve their situation, by facilitating cross-border rail transport. Over one quarter expect an average improvement of their position on the market, further to adoption of the package. According to PLATO, this will confirm the continuing gap between the expectations expressed of European rail policy, and the generally negative assessment of measures taken. Administrative and technical barriers are still too great, and are detrimental to the process of rail liberalisation.
The rail service providers, however, will not remain inactive. Three quarters of the respondent companies stated their intention to strengthen their activities within associations and to do more lobbying, in order to make the general public and political decision-makers more aware of their situation, and in order to influence the sector's liberalisation process.