At the ERFA Annual Event 2026 in Brussels, dedicated to the question “How to relaunch European rail freight?”, Godfried Smit, Secretary General of the European Shippers’ Council, highlighted the growing importance of rail freight for European supply chains facing rising costs and operational pressure.
Addressing policymakers and industry representatives, Godfried Smit noted that transport decisions are ultimately business decisions based on cost, reliability, and control. While road transport remains dominant across Europe, increasing congestion, driver shortages, volatile energy prices, and upcoming measures such as ETS2 and road charging are changing the economic landscape for freight transport.
According to ESC, these developments are leading more companies to consider rail freight, particularly on longer-distance and high-volume corridors where rail can already provide cost and efficiency benefits. In addition, rail freight offers higher energy efficiency, larger transport capacity, and significantly lower CO₂ emissions compared with road transport.
At the same time, Godfried Smit stressed that rail can only become a stronger alternative if performance improves. For shippers, reliability and predictability remain essential. Delays, inaccurate delivery times, inefficient terminals, and unstable pricing continue to affect confidence in rail services and create additional supply chain costs.
ESC therefore called for continued investment in infrastructure, digitalisation, better ETA systems, and stronger integration between rail, ports, and logistics platforms. Cooperation between all actors in the supply chain, including the ongoing dialogue between ESC and the European Rail Freight Association, is seen as essential to improve operational quality and competitiveness.
Concluding his intervention, Godfried Smit stated that shippers are ready to increase the use of rail freight when it delivers stable operations, predictable performance, and a clear business advantage.