Meeting the Needs of Regional Train Travelers: A Comparison of Four Regions in Europe

You are here: Homepage > Search

Meeting the Needs of Regional Train Travelers: A Comparison of Four Regions in Europe

Baanders, Ambrosius / Delahais, Thomas

Regional train services are largely organized at the regional level in Europe, but the objectives, strategies and implementation details vary widely from one country to another. This paper relies on a comparison exercise performed within the evaluation of the Rhône-Alps Region's train policy, comparing four regions in four European countries, all responsible for organizing and financing regional passenger train services: the metropolitan region of Barcelona in Spain, the Rhine-Ruhr area in Germany, the Canton of Zurich in Switzerland, and the Rhône-Alps region in France. It shows how strategic and tactical decisions taken on transport issues are shaped by local and national contexts. How do the authorities get value for money from the train operators? And how do they meet the needs of the regional travellers? The comparison shows that good results (in terms of satisfaction of passenger and policy makers, and of value for money) can be obtained by the application of a regime of competition for the market, as well as through direct negotiation without any competition. However, the way in which the system is implemented is vital for its success in both cases.