This report examines the form regulation should take in rail freight markets to promote efficiency in railways and the wider economy. It analyses issues of monopoly, scale economies, competition, mergers, ownership and the structure of the rail industry. Experience in North America, Australia,...

Now that railway infrastructure and train operations have been separated in Europe -- at least for accounting purposes -- user charges for infrastructure are progressively being introduced to cover the costs of running trains. However, because of the lack of experience in this field, it is...

Over the last few years, much progress has been made in developing rail charges to ensure non-discriminatory access to, and efficient use of national rail networks. But in Europe the international dimension is still missing, particularly in terms of the freight market. Integration of European...

Competitive tendering provides a way to introduce competition to railways whilst preserving an integrated network of services. It has been used for freight railways in some countries but is particularly attractive for passenger networks when subsidised services make competition between trains...