RNE’s activities in the field of Traffic Management are aimed at the improvement of Members’ operational processes and cooperation, to increase the overall effectiveness of international and national railway traffic, with a focus on customer needs.

The RNE Traffic Management department mainly focuses on specific operational projects which are relevant for the sector, international by nature and achievable within two to three years. RNE is currently leading several conceptual traffic management-related activities such as the  European Traffic Management Network (ETMN) concept, Language Programme and  Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) Programme. The ETMN concept includes Railway Collaborative Decision Making and International Contingency Management supported by TIS Incident Management Tool.  

Whitin these programmes and concepts, close cooperation with European authorities, member states, RFCs, RUs, terminals and combined transport operators is of great importance within RNE Traffic Management. 

Special attention is currently being paid to the cooperation and communication of national traffic control centres within a defined European Traffic Management Network concept and communication between stakeholders being defined in Railway Collaborative Decision Making project. All activities are aimed to contribute to improved train punctuality, better network capacity utilisation, cross-border operation and a reduction of dwell times at borders. 

RNE is actively supporting its Members in establishing train run forecasting solutions, for more effective train run management and better resource management among all stakeholders of the logistics chain. An equally important part of RNE’s activities is focused on the simplification of international train run management by removing existing language barriers for IMs and RUs. RNE actively facilitates the enhanced cooperation between RNE Members and all stakeholders in the logistic chain as mainly are RUs, terminals, combined transport operators, freight forwarders, Rail Freight Corridors (RFCs) in the matter of traffic management. Besides that, RNE also supports its Members in international contingency management.

Traffic Management at RNE

RailNetEurope (RNE) actively works to enhance the operational processes and cooperation among its Members, aiming to increase the overall efficiency of both international and national railway traffic, with a strong focus on customer needs. 

The RNE Traffic Management Department focuses on specific operational projects that are international in nature, sector-relevant, and achievable within two to three years. RNE currently leads several conceptual traffic management initiatives, including: 

1. European Traffic Management Network (ETMN) concept, which encompasses Railway Collaborative Decision Making (R-CDM) and International Contingency Management (ICM), which is supported by the TIS Incident Management Tool. 
2. Language Programme, dedicated to overcoming language barriers for Infrastructure Managers (IMs) and Railway Undertakings (RUs) in train operations. 
3. Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) Programme, supporting accurate forecasting for improved train run management and resource allocation across the logistics chain. 

Benefits for members and stakeholders

• Enhance cross-border cooperation and communication between national traffic control centres according to the concept of the European Traffic Management Network (ETMN). 

• Overall improvement of railway operations through structured communication and decision-making between key stakeholders as defined in the Railway Collaborative Decision Making (R-CDM) project. 

• Effective communication in operation using language tools 

• Higher train punctuality and network capacity utilization by reducing dwell times at borders and increasing operational efficiency. 

• More effective resource management 

• Higher effectivity and harmonisation of operational processes in traffic management 

RNE Traffic Management organisational set-up and cooperation