The European rail sector continues to strengthen its strategic capacity planning framework, moving towards ever more efficient use of rail capacity in support of the EU’s sustainable transport goals.

Two major developments mark recent progress:

• The publication of final Capacity Models for TT2027
• The publication of draft Capacity Strategies for TT2029 (open for feedback)

These milestones reflect the growing maturity, coordination, and transparency of rail capacity planning across Europe.

Draft Capacity Strategies TT2029: Submit your feedback now!

In the currently running consultation phase of draft Capacity Strategies, stakeholders can influence the direction of strategic capacity planning to reflect real operational needs and priorities – both nationally and across borders.

Stakeholders are strongly encouraged to review the published draft Capacity Strategies and submit feedback to the contact person indicated for the respective Capacity Strategy.

The first five documents cover the networks of 13 Infrastructure Managers (IMs), additional drafts are expected.

The Capacity Strategies are documents created by each IM, setting down the general principles to be used further in the capacity planning and capacity allocation process. They include the expected available capacity and a first rough analysis of expected traffic flows.

TT2027 Capacity Models: More IMs, More Planning Value

Another step forward in strategic European capacity management was the recent publication of TT2027 Capacity Models in the European Capacity Management Tool (ECMT).

Capacity Models provide early and structured insights into expected capacity usage – helping applicants and other stakeholders in their long-term planning.

Key highlights of the publication for TT2027:

• Wider participation shows growing alignment across Europe (10 IMs have now published their TT2027 Capacity Models, further publications are pending).
• Some of the models published for TT2027 present valuable examples of best practice offering comprehensive network coverage and full-scale presentation of planned capacity volumes (incl. regional/inter-urban and national/international services).
• ICL (Intended Capacity Usage Line) values have been defined by five IMs. These values show how capacity is expected to be used and help to identify potential pressure points early, enhancing strategic and operational decision-making for all parties involved.

Questions on Capacity Models? – Contact your national TTR Implementation Manager

Aligning Long-Term Infrastructure Planning with Operational Realities

In the next step, IMs will use the results of the stakeholder consultation on TT2029 draft Capacity Strategies to refine ahead of publishing the final strategies in December 2025.

Each step taken in the advance capacity planning process is one step further in aligning long-term infrastructure planning with operational realities across the Europe, laying the ground for sustainable mobility according to the EU’s goals.

^{RNE’s coordination activities are funded by the European Union.}