Covid-19 and CO2 – impacts on and implications for rail

In the early decades of the 21st century, railways had an established, small (relative to road transport) but significant share of the overall transport market, providing a combination of high-speed, high-capacity passenger services and high-volume, long-distance freight transport, with the balance between passenger and freight traffic varying by location. The passenger railway market was severely disrupted from early 2020 by the Covid-19 pandemic; traffic volumes have since recovered, but work-related travel volumes (and, importantly, revenue) have not returned to their pre-Covid levels, putting pressure on railways and their funders to restore revenue and/or cut their costs. As an energy-efficient and low-Carbon (assuming high levels of usage) mode of transport with a potentially vital role to play in addressing the climate crisis, increasing passenger and/or freight volumes (preferably via modal shift) and total revenue is clearly the preferred option, ideally in parallel with increased efficiency and reduced unit costs. To meet these objectives, the railway industry needs to provide high-quality, comprehensive and integrated (including other, complementary modes) transport options that are easy to plan and use, and which provide users (and funders) with good value for money.