Passenger

General context of the business activity

With the emergence of new technologies, changes in customer behaviour and choices regarding mobility, and the development of competition in the rail sector, railway undertakings and infrastructure managers are shifting towards a more customercentred approach when providing services, investing in innovation and research to offer more personalised and seamless journeys.

Against this background, the UIC Passenger Department acts as a lever to transform the railway business by offering sectoral technical solutions (IRS), opportunities for knowledge exchange, networking platforms and tools, and support for the whole rail sector: railway undertakings and infrastructure managers, but also decision makers, research centres, universities or Ticket Vendors, for all aspects related to rail passenger transport.

Reference to how the business is organised

UIC’s passenger activity is inspired by the involvement of its members in the Passenger Global Forum, led by Manel Villalante I Llauradó (Renfe).The forum is subdivided into five areas of activity:

• Passenger Services Group (PSG)
• Intercity and High-Speed Committee
• Commuter and Regional Train Services (CRTS)
• Stations Managers Global Group
• Tourism opportunities for Railways

And a special group:

• RIC/A (Agreements on the exchange and use of passenger cars and self-propelled units in international rail traffic)

Global Passenger Forum

The UIC Global Passenger Forum was set up so that members all over the world could jointly adopt a global approach to UIC Passenger activity, encompassing the five passenger sectors (Intercity and High-Speed, Commuter and Regional Trains, Stations, Passenger Services Group and TopRail) and relevant projects, and discuss and set common priorities, strategies and directives, eventually to be coordinated with other forums and platforms where appropriate.

The purpose of the UIC Global Passenger Forum is to:

• Set out a global and strategic vision for UIC Passenger activities, and establish guidelines and priority lines of work;
• Transversely coordinate and supervise Passenger-related work conducted by the five groups and committees;
• Collect results and deliverables from the different activities and projects undertaken, with a view to disseminating outcomes as widely as possible among members, within the scope of the applicable intellectual property rights;
• Select and endorse candidates put forward for the positions of chair or other roles within the groups and committees, to be ratified by the UIC General Assembly in accordance with UIC Statutes;
• Coordinate with the Railway System Forum and other platforms, such as Digitalisation, Standardisation, RICG (Research and Innovation Coordination Group), Safety, etc., on key issues relating to Passenger activity;
• Promote and facilitate meetings with other organisations relevant to passenger transport, such as UITP (International Union of Public Transport), CIT (International Rail Transport Committee), OSJD (Organisation for Cooperation of Railways), CER (Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies), RNE (RailNetEurope), Association of American Railroads (AAR), etc.
• Integrate and coordinate, in a coherent and consistent way, activities and projects relating to passenger transport developed at the regional level of UIC. Recommend that the General Assembly approve cross-regional projects and activities adopted by the various groups and committees under the Passenger Global Forum.

High-Level Passenger Meeting

The High-Level Passenger Meeting (HLPM), co-organised by UIC and CER, is an event
aimed at European Passenger CEOs to discuss strategic topics relating to the challenges faced by the European railways.

This meeting brings top managers from Passenger railway companies across Europe together for discussions on important rail passenger transport policy issues.
The purpose of this meeting is to review key questions about European railway passenger policy, and to address the technical and political challenges facing passenger transport in the future.

During the last HLPM on 2 October 2020, the focus was on the development of the OSDM (Open Sales and Distribution Model), as per the resolution from the previous HLPM. One standard had been developed, comprising two parts: OSDM Platform and OSDM Online. Other topics were also discussed, such as support for companies during the Covid-19 pandemic, the start of the International Rail Passenger Platform, and the opportunities for flight substitution via rail in Europe.

The next HLPM will be held on 8 October 2021 in Paris, and Passenger CEOs will discuss strategic subjects, including distribution, the ‘New Normal’ and new services.