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Sector collaboration to address Temporary Capacity Restrictions

12 June 2026

     Business Areas     Market & Performance     Sector collaboration to address Temporary Capacity Restrictions

On 27 May 2026, RailNetEurope launched a joint mandate-driven collaboration to support the preparation of delegated acts on Temporary Capacity Restrictions (TCRs) under the EU Capacity Regulation.

This marks the start of a coordinated sector effort to help shape future European rules for managing TCRs and their impact on rail capacity. The collaboration brings together Infrastructure Managers (IMs), Railway Undertakings (RUs) and sector representatives to develop coordinated technical input for the European Commission.

Become part of the collaboration!

Operational stakeholders other than IMs wishing to take part in this work are invited to apply for participation by 16 June 2026, 10:00 CET, by sending an email to abcr@rne.eu together with a brief motivation reflecting the criteria described in section 4 of the draft mandate

Background and context

The Rail Capacity Regulation will empower the European Commission to adopt two delegated acts related to TCRs, covering the scheduling of TCRs and the management of changes to capacity rights after allocation resulting from such TCRs.

DG MOVE has announced that these will be implemented through a single delegated act adopted within 18 months after the Regulation enters into force. Given the significant operational and organisational impact on IMs and RUs, the European Commission is committed to an early and structured involvement of the rail sector.

In this context, RNE has taken the initiative to prepare technical input in a broad sector effort, ensuring alignment with existing good practicesat national and cross-border levels and facilitating cooperation between the various stakeholders.

Scope and organisation of the joint collaboration

The work of the joint collaboration is organised into two phases. Phase 1 focuses on the management of changes to allocated capacity rights (Article 41 of the Capacity Regulation). Phase 2 addresses the scheduling of capacity restrictions resulting from infrastructure works (Articles 11(9) and 37).

During the kick off meeting,participants discussed main issues to be covered by the technical input for the Delegated Act. These include:

  • Determination of TCRs to qualify for the rescheduling window regime (see below)
  • Timelines and milestones for adapting or rescheduling allocated capacity rights
  • The use of rescheduling windows for works with lower operational impact
  • Consistency with future European capacity management processes (European Framework for Capacity Management)

The discussions underlined the importance of a shared understanding between IMs and RUs, particularly for multi network traffic, where coordination and predictability are critical.

Exchange on good practices and proposals for the scheduling of TCRs and managing the impacts on rail capacity

A dedicated agenda item was reserved for a first joint proposal by DB InfraGo, ProRail and SBB-I. The presentation and discussion illustrated the challenges of managing TCRs in practice and shared perspectives and early views on an possible approach comprising two phases: (1) a first preliminary phase for the preparation of alternative traffic concepts (e.g. freight trains re-routed; passenger trains re-timed) and a consultation of applicants concerned; (2) a second phase to construct and allocate specific train paths. This sequence is implemented for subperiods of the entire working timetable period (‘rescheduling windows’ / ‘timetable slices’) and involves a phase during which capacity restrictions remain stable (‘frozen zones’).

Participants discussed the potential of an earlier phase to obtain input from RUs. The exchange confirmed the importance of developing harmonised solutions building on existing experience rather than isolated solutions.

Next steps

DG MOVE shared its indicative planning to follow up on the empowerments in the regulation, indicated its intention to prepare and adopt a single delegated act amending section 8 of Annex I, and related elements of section 3 for consistency reasons and potential introduction of best practices accepted by the sector (based on empowerments in Articles 11 and 41).

The procedure is likely to involve the following steps:

  • Work with rail sector through SERAF (October 2026 to Q1 2027)
  • Discussion of a preliminary draft of the delegated act with Member State experts
  • Public consultation on the draft delegated act (Have Your Say)
  • Adoption by Commission

The participants in the joint collaboration will take this planning into account in organising the work.

To support and structure the collaboration, RNE has prepared a mandate setting out the scope, objectives and working approach. Following the discussions during the kick-off meeting, the mandate will be updated where needed and shared for review and approval by participants to ensure a common understanding and commitment to the collaboration process.

Further information and all relevant documents are available on the RNE website: https://rne.eu/market-performance/stakeholder-relations/stakeholder-engagement-activities/