Digital single European railway area : how do we get there?

Digitalization is currently transforming the railway sector in a profound way. As we know from the experience in other sectors this process has an impact on the basic functioning and business model of the entire sector. Concretely, railways are dealing with technological transformations in operations, rolling stock, infrastructure management, customer services and ticket distribution. These innovation processes lead to efficiency improvements while some of them also open the door to new forms of competition. The 11th Florence Rail Forum brought together regulators, operators, associations and academics to discuss state of play and challenges of the digitalization of railways. What emerged was that the digital transformation offers more opportunities than challenges for the sector and alters the role of regulation. Both companies and regulators urgently need rules for the treatment of data and for the functioning of an ever more “digital” transport sector. However, where regulation cannot keep pace with innovation, it risks being an obstacle for it.