In an open letter addressed to the German Minister for Foreign Affairs, Patrick Schnieder, and the CEO of the German railway group Deutsche Bahn (DB), Evelyn Palla, the European Rail Freight Association (ERFA), Fermerci, Hupac, Kombiverkehr, SGKV, TX Logistik and Union International Rail Road (UIRR) have called for the combined transport sector to be saved.

"For many years," they recalled in the letter, "the combined transport has been the growth engine of the Rail freight transport, a beacon of hope for policies climate and transport policies. Moving freight from road to rail seemed obvious, with growth rates 3 to 7% per year. But now - they pointed out - that's all finished. After years of gradual deterioration of the infrastructure rail transport, freight performance is bad, reliability is bad and production costs are skyrocketing due to cancellations, diversions and delays of trains. And now, in addition to the numerous construction sites, the interruptions and existing bottlenecks, work is on the way renovation of the corridors. Deviations are proposed for Six-month full closures, but their sustainability economic is uncertain. The experience of the previous phases of construction shows that restrictions are to be expected as trains are more track profiles not suitable for freight transport or routes significantly longer. These conditions lead to jeopardising the competitiveness of rail freight transport and lead to the cancellation of trains and the transfer of traffic on the road".

"To this - the letter continues - in addition to the costs of using the railway, which are in constant increase. From 2023, the tolls for access to the tracks are increased by 19% and further increases are expected for 2026 between 25% and 35%. Penalties are applied for cancellations with short notice, although many are a direct consequence of the poor network quality. Wagon storage which have to be withdrawn from service due to the lack of competitiveness now entails considerable costs. The result is that the competitiveness of transport is decreasing. While transport prices rail transport costs remain stable or even decreasing. No wonder that Long-standing customers are also turning their backs on transport arranged. We hear daily about a return to the a process that is happening rapidly and that has difficult to reverse. Those who bought new trucks and hired Drivers usually stay there permanently. This trend is already visible and documented. On the corridor of the Valley of the Rhine through Switzerland, combined transport is decreased by 7.6% in recent years, while freight transport on increased by 7.2%, which means the transfer of 86,000 trucks from the rails. For the next few years, We expect a 20 to 30% reduction in the capacity of rail freight transport due to the modernisation of the corridor, resulting in hundreds of thousands of additional trips of truck. Only on the main transalpine corridors through Austria and Switzerland, this translates into around 500,000 shipments of more trucks, with an increase in emissions, congestion and the risk of accidents. This return to transport on the road would nullify the government's ten-year investments in modern terminal infrastructures, in line with the Guidelines for transport transhipment facilities combined'.

«Even the huge investments railway infrastructure, such as the Base Tunnel Gotthard Base Tunnel and the Brenner Base Tunnel - have noted the signatories of the letter - would be nullified in the medium to long term term. These projects have been carried out in the confidence that the Federal Republic of Germany, as an important hub and transit corridor, would provide the capacity necessary and therefore contributed significantly to the competitiveness of Europe in a global comparison, in particular with Asia".

Denouncing that "the indifference of the politics of the transport compared to combined transport is alarming" despite the fact that "efficient logistics is the lifeblood of German industry', associations and companies have called for "short and medium-term measures To halt the impending decline of rail freight transport: No increase - is the first request - in access fees to the railway lines for 2026". Therefore, "guarantee capacity equal to at least 90% of the current capacity transport as part of all corridor upgrades and of long-term construction projects. Modernisation of suitable alternative routes with the same parameters relating to length, weight and profile of the trains of the main lines. Allocation of train paths in the event of a bottleneck on the market demand. Consideration of the profile, the load of trains and scheduling to maintain the greatest possible possible number of transports on the tracks. Hardship compensation for low-quality track sections during the modernisation of the corridor, to support connections which would otherwise have to be interrupted." Finally, it is requested the "suspension of cancellation penalties", and all this "until the restoration of a quality of the acceptable network".

"At stake," the signatories underlined, "are the security of supply for industry, competitiveness as an economic centre, climate targets and, for example, many companies, simply, their economic survival".