Rail Passenger Rights Regulation Recast - recommendations for the Trilogue negotiations

European passenger rights are among the European Union's greatest successes and will become ever more important in the coming years. Today's consumers are changing their habits and want more flexibility when they travel. They also feel concerned about their environmental impact and want to reduce it.

Consequently, there is an underlying trend to shift to alternative and sustainable modes of transport. Therefore, rail will undoubtedly play a key role in the near future. 

The reform of the Rail Passenger Rights Regulation is a great opportunity for EU policy makers to promote more sustainable ways of transport. To drive that change, consumers need to be encouraged to shift to rail. To do so, they should be better protected and be able to rely on strong and clear rights when a disruption arises which is currently not the case.

Recommendations include: 

1. Deleting the "Force Majeure" clause;

2. Removing national exemptions;

3. Fair compensation;

4. Securing passenger rights all along consumers' journey;

5. Stronger enforcement.