Derailed

2021 is the official “Year of Rail” in the EU, and the “Connecting Europe Express” train recently finished its tour of Europe to promote the great advantages and decisive importance of railways in the green transition. But what was meant as a PR coup revealed the weaknesses of the system, which is more a patchwork than a coordinated network of trains across the continent.

November 2021

INVESTIGATE-EUROPE-TRAINS-0-01-40-14.jpg
From road to rail” has been the mantra of authorities across Europe for decades. The EU’s railway packages since 2001 were designed to open the railways to competition; to connect national railways to make them a coherent whole, and to bring much more freight and many more passengers onto the tracks.  

This has not happened. Less than 20% of freight is transported via rail. A fraction of international travel happens by train. It is more difficult to travel by railways through Europe today than it was before all these reforms. And the urgency for real change grows by the day: transportation is one of the major contributors of greenhouse gases. Climate neutrality — which the Eu aims to achieve by  2050 — is impossible without a major shift.

Investigate Europe has checked the status of European railways and searched for the reasons that plans and announcements have not come to life. Who blocks the most sustainable and environmentally-friendly means of transport for passengers and goods? Where has the money gone if not to the railways? Who profits from the situation? What is being done to shunt trains onto a better track?

What did we find?

  • Our data analysis shows that EU states still invest significantly more money in road than rail.
  • In the past 20 years, 6,000 km of rail have been decommissioned
  • EU states have adopted several directives to create a common rail transport market, which should make the European rail systems interoperable. But in reality, national railway companies seal off their markets against each other instead of offering cross-border connections.
  • IE has found several examples of “non-aggression” agreements between national companies from different states —to avoid competition
  • There is still no uniform signalling and control system in Europe.
  • National companies order trains that can only be used on national networks.
  • States are even enacting rules to protect their markets. For example, locomotive drivers in several EU countries now have to speak the local language to be allowed to drive there.
  • To date, there is no way to check the journey times and buy tickets for a trip across Europe on a single website. There was an EU legislative initiative for this, but the German and French governments have systematically blocked it in the Council of the EU. 
  • Night trains have been cut down and it will be difficult to revive the system in an ad hoc manner now.
  • Instead of using the funds for projects that bring quick and major improvements, EU states are investing billions in inefficient large-scale projects, which the European Court of Auditors has harshly criticised. At the same time, citizens’ initiatives are mobilising against new railway lines.
  • Non-connectivity has led to absurd results: to cover the 600 km distance between Lisbon and Madrid, one has to change trains three times and travel for about 11 hours. It is one of the most popular flight routes in Europe
  • In Europe, only eight out of every 100 journeys is made by rail.  Eurostat figures show that international rail travel is nearly completely insignificant. 

Read more with our media partners and the exclusive website material listed below. This is an ongoing investigation so this list will be constantly updated.

More from Derailed


HELP US CONNECT THE DOTS ON EUROPE

Support cross-border journalism

Publications

 Det greske raseriet: Jernbaneulykken var en ventet
Det greske raseriet: Jernbaneulykken var en ventet

Fri Fagbevegelse, Norway

21 March 2023

Derrière la catastrophe ferroviaire en Grèce, un échec européen et français
Derrière la catastrophe ferroviaire en Grèce, un échec européen et français

Mediapart, France

18 March 2023

Il disastro dei treni greci nasce dai tagli della Troika
Il disastro dei treni greci nasce dai tagli della Troika

Il Fatto Quotidiano, Italy

9 March 2023

Το πραγματικό όνομα του Σταθμάρχη ήταν Άκτωρ και
Το πραγματικό όνομα του Σταθμάρχη ήταν Άκτωρ και

Reporters United, Greece

5 March 2023

Why are cross-country train tickets in EU still so complex?
Why are cross-country train tickets in EU still so complex?

EUobserver, Belgium

31 December 2022

Η αποτυχία της ευρωπαϊκής σιδηροδρομικής πολιτικής
Η αποτυχία της ευρωπαϊκής σιδηροδρομικής πολιτικής

EfSyn, Greece

16 February 2022

Σκανδαλώδεις εξαιρέσεις, μυστικές συμβάσεις και επενδύσεις
Σκανδαλώδεις εξαιρέσεις, μυστικές συμβάσεις και επενδύσεις

EfSyn, Greece

15 February 2022

Το «Ασημένιο Βέλος» και άλλες ιστορίες για ιθαγενείς
Το «Ασημένιο Βέλος» και άλλες ιστορίες για ιθαγενείς

EfSyn, Greece

14 February 2022

Et ensporet land
Et ensporet land

Agenda Magasin, Norway

24 January 2022

Avec la libéralisation des trains régionaux, la SNCF perd son trône dans l’Hexagone
Avec la libéralisation des trains régionaux, la SNCF perd son trône dans l’Hexagone

Mediapart, France

28 December 2021

Le grand déraillement de l’Europe du train
Le grand déraillement de l’Europe du train

Mediapart, France

26 December 2021

Why it’s so infuriatingly hard to get around Europe by train
Why it’s so infuriatingly hard to get around Europe by train

OpenDemocracy, UK

19 December 2021

‘Een ongecoördineerd, chaotisch en inefficiënt lappendeken’
‘Een ongecoördineerd, chaotisch en inefficiënt lappendeken’

Trends, Belgium

16 December 2021

Jernbanen er mye mer oppsplittet enn EU krever
Jernbanen er mye mer oppsplittet enn EU krever

Agenda Magasin, Norway

14 December 2021

Go-Ahead brøt kontraktsvilkår, mister britisk toglinje
Go-Ahead brøt kontraktsvilkår, mister britisk toglinje

Stavanger Aftenblad, Norway

8 December 2021

Koliko je isplativ projekat rekonstrukcije kojim se podiže brzina vozova na pruzi Beograd-Budimpešta
Koliko je isplativ projekat rekonstrukcije kojim se podiže brzina vozova na pruzi Beograd-Budimpešta

Danas, Serbia

2 December 2021

Comboios: o grande descarrilamento europeu
Comboios: o grande descarrilamento europeu

Público, Portugal

28 November 2021

Os comboios europeus têm um problema de comunicação
Os comboios europeus têm um problema de comunicação

Público, Portugal

27 November 2021

Comboios: onde estão os direitos dos passageiros?
Comboios: onde estão os direitos dos passageiros?

Público, Portugal

27 November 2021

Budapest-Belgrad: a 979 év alatt megtérüló vasútvonal
Budapest-Belgrad: a 979 év alatt megtérüló vasútvonal

Telex, Hungary

25 November 2021

El tren nocturno resucita en Europa pero pasa de largo por España
El tren nocturno resucita en Europa pero pasa de largo por España

infoLibre, Spain

25 November 2021

La Tierra gira más rápido alrededor del sol que el sistema ferroviario de la Península
La Tierra gira más rápido alrededor del sol que el sistema ferroviario de la Península

infoLibre, Spain

25 November 2021

España no tenía tan pocas conexiones en tren con Portugal y Francia desde hace más de medio siglo
España no tenía tan pocas conexiones en tren con Portugal y Francia desde hace más de medio siglo

infoLibre, Spain

25 November 2021

Były prezes PKP: Jeśli bilet lotniczy z Warszawy do Berlina jest tańszy niż kolejowy, to nie ma się co dziwić ludziom
Były prezes PKP: Jeśli bilet lotniczy z Warszawy do Berlina jest tańszy niż kolejowy, to nie ma się co dziwić ludziom

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland

23 November 2021

Forsinket på ubestemt tid
Forsinket på ubestemt tid

Klassekampen, Norway

23 November 2021

Los gobiernos europeos frenan los derechos de los viajeros de tren
Los gobiernos europeos frenan los derechos de los viajeros de tren

infoLibre, Spain

22 November 2021

Europa im Bummelzug
Europa im Bummelzug

Republik, Switzerland

22 November 2021

Karol Trammer: Politycy wydają setki milionów na nowe linie kolejowe, po których potem jeżdżą cztery pociągi na dobę
Karol Trammer: Politycy wydają setki milionów na nowe linie kolejowe, po których potem jeżdżą cztery pociągi na dobę

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland

22 November 2021

Europa na wyboistych szynach. Dlaczego wybieramy samolot zamiast pociągu?
Europa na wyboistych szynach. Dlaczego wybieramy samolot zamiast pociągu?

Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland

21 November 2021

Sud da Medioevo, ma il governo mette miliardi sull’Alta velocità
Sud da Medioevo, ma il governo mette miliardi sull’Alta velocità

Il Fatto Quotidiano, Italy

21 November 2021

Treni, la guerra tra società statali che non fanno più servizio pubblico
Treni, la guerra tra società statali che non fanno più servizio pubblico

Il Fatto Quotidiano, Italy

21 November 2021

Il “treno europeo” è fallito, oggi è anche peggio di vent’anni fa
Il “treno europeo” è fallito, oggi è anche peggio di vent’anni fa

Il Fatto Quotidiano, Italy

21 November 2021

El Gobierno, Renfe y Talgo llevan año y medio chocando contra el muro que protege el mercado ferroviario francés
El Gobierno, Renfe y Talgo llevan año y medio chocando contra el muro que protege el mercado ferroviario francés

infoLibre, Spain

21 November 2021

El tren en Europa permanece en vía muerta con pocos pasajeros y redes inconexas construidas con años de retraso
El tren en Europa permanece en vía muerta con pocos pasajeros y redes inconexas construidas con años de retraso

infoLibre, Spain

20 November 2021

Wie die Bahnen Klima und Kunden ausbremsen
Wie die Bahnen Klima und Kunden ausbremsen

Der Tagesspiegel, Germany

18 November 2021

Így siklatták ki a klímavédelem egyik fontos projektjét
Így siklatták ki a klímavédelem egyik fontos projektjét

Telex, Hungary

18 November 2021