Towards International Passenger Corridors: 21st Florence Rail Forum

• Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies
• FSR: Florence School of Regulation Transport

The Florence School of Regulation Transport Area and the European Commission's DG Move will co-host the 21st Florence Rail Forum. The conference will provide a well-timed platform for discussion on the sustainable development of international passenger and rail freight corridors.

The 21st Florence Rail Forum, co-hosted by the Transport Area of the Florence School of Regulation and the Commission’s DG MOVE, will provide a well-timed platform for discussion on the possible development of international passenger and rail freight corridors. In particular, participants will be invited to critically discuss the capacity of corridors, harmonisation of standards for track access charges, as well as ticketing systems.

Railway transport is the backbone of sustainable mobility. The modal share of passengers transported by rail in the EU Member States reached 6.9% in 2018. According to the recently released ‘Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy’, high-speed rail traffic should triple by 2050. To make this happen TEN-T corridors need to be completed by 2030. More cross-border projects will be needed to integrate all Member States into the European rail system of the future, in turn establishing smooth interconnections for cross-border rail travel across Europe. To speed up the process, the European Commission will propose in 2021 an action plan to boost long-distance and cross-border passenger rail services.