RailCom promotes participation in the rail sector
Bern, 25.04.2025 — The Rail Transport Commission RailCom publishes its activity report today, in which it emphasises the importance of participation to ensure fair access to the rail network. It also reports on its ongoing proceedings and on its new chair, Dr Barbara Furrer, who has taken over from Patrizia Danioth Halter.
Participation as a key component of non-discrimination
RailCom is the oversight authority for non-discriminatory access to the Swiss railway network. In the activity report published today, it discusses how the instrument of participation, provided for in the Railways Act, can be used to prevent discrimination: by involving affected companies and stakeholder groups in decision-making processes, more balanced and sustainable solutions can be reached. In 2024, RailCom was involved in ensuring that the right to participation was observed in a number of system tasks. It also organised a symposium on the issue, held in October.
Ongoing proceedings
Two official investigations are currently under way and two appeals are pending. The subject of these proceedings are the additional service ‘Shunting in marshalling yards’, access to intermodal freight terminals co-financed by the Confederation and a ruling by the Swiss capacity allocation body regarding the rejection of applications for train paths.
New chair
Dr Barbara Furrer took on the chair of RailCom on 1 January 2025. She replaces Patrizia Danioth Halter, who led and developed the commission successfully and with great commitment for twelve years.