The Hungarian Railway Transport Association, Hungrail, which also includes Romania, is now developing its regional and international strategy which includes identifying the railway problems and challenges and elaborating a coherent approach.
For the development of Hungary’s railway system, MÁV Group needs to change its organisation. “With a completely new organisational structure, MÁV Group will have three main pillars: a joint company of MÁV-START, MÁV-TRAKCIÓ and MÁV-GÉPÉSZET, set up in January 2014, the infrastructure company and the Central Background Services Company responsible with the management of the entire group. In the future, the stress will fall on passenger transport and infrastructure as main income sources that will be consolidated to increase the customer’s satisfaction”, declared Ilona Dávid, CEO of MÁV.
As regards the infrastructure services, “the largest customer of MÁV Group is Rail Cargo Hungaria Co, whose activity and market presence have a significant impact over the national and neighbouring railway systems. It is essential to have national contracts in order to have a predictable transport. We have to be open to private operators because it is our only change to recover the lost market. Also, Hungrail plays a major role in eliminating problems at border crossings”, believes Imre Kovács, CEO of Rail Cargo Hungaria Co.
An important factor for an efficient transport that would create conditions favourable to the growth of the railway transport market share is the interface between railway companies and the government’s activities, the Railway Development Plan, and the elaboration of a new railway law. All these aspects are making railway companies renew their operations in EU member states, a triggering factor being the development of the TEN-T network that could take place thanks to project investments. These developments have a relatively low source, but the intention of the Ministry is to significantly optimise competitiveness in railway transport, explained János Kerékgyártó, Head of Transport Department, and Gábor Rácz, Head of Rail Transport Department, Ministry of National Development.
According to Hungrail’s regional and international strategy, the conference has also involved Romania, represented by Ştefan Roşeanu, Senior Partner Club Feroviar, a company that represents Hungrail in Romania. In the rail freight transport segment, “the first private company entered the Romanian market in 2001 and in 2013 the privatisation of the national rail freight operator became a priority objective for keeping it afloat. Regarding the track access charge, Romania is not one of the countries with the highest charge, but one has to consider the long distances on the country’s territory. There is motivation of private initiatives where the government and the market could be partners as profit-making companies prefer a situation in which competitiveness is encouraged among operators. The extension of the sale procedure could be finalized as late as 2014, when the Competition Council might approve the sale”, said Roşeanu.
In order to meet the conditions that favour the market share growth, it is necessary to correlate investments with economic and political resources adopted by authorities, the reduction of market access costs and the acquired railway knowledge. As railway organisations estimate significant growths, for both freight and passenger transport, it is also necessary to adopt joint positions that would trigger the formation of an integrated, efficient and performing system, not only nationally, but mostly internationally.
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