EU approves financial assistance to rail operators in Germany, Denmark and the Czech Republic

06.08.2021

The European Commission has approved state aid schemes with a total funding of € 2.56 billion to support freight and passenger rail operators in Germany, Denmark and the Czech Republic affected by the coronavirus pandemic, informs Railway Supply magazine.

The € 2.5 billion support has been approved for rail freight and passenger operators in Germany to tackle the “difficult situation caused by the coronavirus outbreak”. “These measures will help maintain the competitiveness of rail against other modes of transport in line with the objectives of the European Green Deal”, said Executive Vice President Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy.

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For Denmark the Commission approved a € 26 million scheme to support providers of public passenger rail transport. Under this scheme, support will take the form of waiving the fees paid by rail companies for access to rail infrastructure between September and December 2020 and facilitate the transition of passenger transport from road to greener rail.

The European Commission has approved a state aid to the Czech Republic in the amount of € 31 million to compensate railway passenger transport operators for damage incurred as a result of the outbreak of the coronavirus. The Czech Republic has taken measures to limit the spread of the virus. Under this scheme, passenger rail operators will be eligible for compensation in the form of direct subsidies of up to 100% of damage caused between March 12 and June 30, 2020.

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