With those 10 billion euros, Romania has managed to modernise 600 kilometres of railways. Another 900 kilometres of works are ongoing with an estimated value of 6 billion euros.

That is a lot of work that is still underway, but Staicu is happy about the point Romania is about to reach. After all these years, major investments are reaching their ‘delivery moment’.

“That’s quite an important milestone in our activity, because all of society, the European Union and so on only look at completed investments. No one is keen on hearing that you struggle, or you have issues, or you found out that you need to modify some laws internally or regulations. Everyone is looking for that missing connection or bottleneck that is making everyone spend days or weeks without moving their freight and passengers”, says Staicu.

TEN-T and Constanța

EU funding has primarily been directed towards the TEN-T network and associated corridors in Romania, specifically the Rhine-Danube corridor and the newly created Baltic-Black Sea-Aegean corridor. Over 80% of investments have gone toward completing these corridors, with a major focus on the Rhine-Danube corridor’s main axis, linking the west (Curtici) to Constanța.

Staicu highlights two projects on this axis that are close to completion. “We have works ongoing between Brașov and Sighișoara with two big tunnels now being drilled. The expectation is for it to be completed in 2028. In the meantime, the status is around 98-99% from Sighișoara to Simeria and further on.”

The overarching goal of these projects is to allow freight and passengers alike to move across Romania quickly. The Black Sea and Romania’s biggest asset, the Port of Constanța, play a central role in this idea. The latter has seen substantial investments in its links with the broader rail network.

As a result, it could serve as a more attractive entry point for goods into Europe. This holds especially true, considering that it is the largest and deepest container port in the Black Sea. It therefore also occupies a key position on the Middle Corridor from China to Europe.

An approach in stages

Multimodality (linking different transport modes) and energy efficiency (including extensive electrification and introducing new technologies) are current priorities to ensure the network supports economic growth, explains Staicu. The Danube river also offers opportunities for better multimodal connectivity to the European hinterland – which is why Romania is working on an extensive dredging programme to secure year-round navigability.

EU funding has greatly helped Romania to implement these projects. However, money does not grow on trees and is in limited supply. Budgetary constraints exert a restricting effect on infrastructure works. While Romania tries to comply with all TEN-T standards (160 kilometres per hour for passenger trains, 22.5-tonne axle load, 740-metre train length, electrification, and ERTMS), implementing all of this is not always financially feasible.

As a result, the approach has recently shifted to tackling TEN-T standards in different stages of implementation. By prioritising the most critical infrastructure works, like axle load and electrification, Romania aims to meet the minimum interoperability standards first. These factors are must-haves for a train to be able to enter the network from neighbouring countries and to make unhindered cross-border traffic possible.

By enabling the use of 750-metre trains, the IV Rail Module should raise the maximum capacity at the facility. The upgrade is also supposed to increase the number of trains handled per day by building new tracks. Verona Interporto currently has 37 main operational tracks and six support tracks across several terminals, as well as a shunting area.

The upgrade comes in expectation of the Brenner Base Tunnel opening – a vital link on the Scandinavian-Mediterranean TEN-T corridor. This opens up new opportunities for international rail freight operations and an increase in traffic. The Verona Interporto hub is also located on the Mediterranean TEN-T corridor.

“The outlook in 2025 is worse than in 2020, and falls far short of what was initially envisaged”, the Court of Auditors writes. The covid pandemic and Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine have led to cost increases in recent years. Compared to original estimates, costs have grown by an average of 82% for the eight examined transport megaprojects. In 2020, the cost increase was 47%.

Rail Baltica and Turin-Lyon

Two projects stand out for spiralling costs: Rail Baltica and the Turin-Lyon railway. They have, respectively, become four times and two times more expensive than was estimated initially. The growing costs could prove to be a problem for the implementing countries, since EU co-funding is “not directly linked to the total cost”. A case in point here is Latvia, which is struggling to find the funds to complete its section of Rail Baltica.

Clearly, money is an obstacle for TEN-T implementation. It is contributing to severe delays and missed deadlines. The EU auditors noted an average delay of 11 years in 2020 for TEN-T projects, but that has now escalated to 17 years.

Completely out of reach

The Court of Auditors is clear in their conclusion. There is no way that the EU will meet the 2030 deadline to complete the core TEN-T network. “EU transport flagship infrastructures are supposed to reshape Europe, bringing people closer together and facilitating economic activity”, said Annemie Turtelboom, the ECA Member who led this update report.

“But three decades after most of them were designed, we are still a long way from cutting the ribbon on these projects, and a long way from achieving the intended improvements in passenger and freight flows across Europe”, Turtelboom added.

The Auditors note that, interestingly, the EU Commission has only once employed its main legal tool to receive explanations for delays. They also expect that the recent TEN-T regulation revision will give the Commission more oversight over the completion of the network, but that the impact on currently ongoing projects will be limited.

In the coming year, Estonia intends to announce tenders for projects beyond mainline construction. That includes a freight terminal in Muuga, a rolling stock depot at the far end of Rail Baltica in Ülemiste as well as a traffic management system. “These are the components that will turn the railway into a full-fledged transport system, linking it with the economy and the daily lives of people”, Salomets is cited as saying by Latvian media.

Timeliness is the challenge

Once completed, Rail Baltica should provide a continuous standard-gauge rail connection from Tallinn, across all Baltic states to Poland. Despite the numerous problems, the project is underway, and that is a win in itself. “Previously, the main question was whether the Rail Baltica project would ever be implemented. Now the challenge is its execution: the timely completion of the complex cross-border railway system and ensuring that all accompanying infrastructure is ready by the time train operations begin”, Anvar Salomets commented.

Transport Community has published two separate reports, detailing the progress made in the Western Balkans, including their “Next Generation Rail Action Plans”, and in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. The organisation thus details the rate of transposition of EU law, but also progress made on broader action plans. Those include not only transposition of laws, but also other measures, like EU cooperation, sustainability measures, infrastructure projects or operational improvements.

Progress in Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia

These reports offer some interesting insights into the state of rail integration in the region. Let’s begin by looking at Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. Progress on the adoption of EU regulations is very limited, with Georgia taking the lead.

The country has fully adopted half the regulations on train driver licensing and around a third of the acquis on railway safety. It lags behind on interoperability, having adopted none of the regulations. That may not be all that surprising, considering that Georgia is far away from the European rail network. Interoperability is likely low on the priority list, especially considering the importance of transit freight from Azerbaijan and Russia.

The EU integration process of Georgia has essentially halted, and one should not necessarily expect further progress on rail regulation alignment. Due to the country’s location, one could say that this is not exactly a catastrophe. Georgia is of limited relevance to the EU’s rail network, occupying a more important position on the INSTC and Middle Corridor.

No full transposition

Neither Moldova nor Ukraine has fully implemented any aspect of the EU rail acquis. Moldova has made some progress across every area (working time and passenger rights, safety, interoperability, train driver licensing and market access), save one (a regulation relating to ERA). It has not fully implemented anything yet, however.

The same applies to Ukraine, but Transport Community notes that many draft pieces of legislation are currently awaiting adoption. That could significantly boost the rate of EU acquis adoption in Ukraine in the near future.

Progress in the Western Balkans

Let’s move on to the Western Balkans and take a look at the action plan for the region. Note that this goes beyond just the transposition of the EU acquis, but includes additional measures along key pillars: rail market access, interoperability, infrastructure modernisation, safety, driver licensing, regional cooperation and sustainable and multimodal measures. See the graph below for an overview of progress made (hover over the bars to get additional information).

On a national level, it is interesting to look at the rate of transposition of EU rail regulations. There is one clear champion in that area: Serbia. That is perhaps not entirely surprising, since the country has significant EU transit flows. Aligning itself with EU practices helps to streamline those operations, such as imports from the Greek port of Piraeus that travel towards logistics hubs in Hungary.

Serbia is the only country that has transposed a significant share of regulations relating to market access (7 out of 16) and has partially transposed two. The market access rules are supposed to improve competitiveness and create fair business conditions.

Albania follows behind Serbia with 5 regulations on market access fully transposed. All the others – North Macedonia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro have barely implemented any market access regulations.

In terms of adopting interoperability measures, we have another champion: Montenegro. It has fully transposed 14 out of 22 legal acts. Those include TSIs on infrastructure, energy, locomotives, noise, safety in tunnels, control command and signalling and freight wagons. Serbia follows closely behind Montenegro, and Albania and Kosovo also have relatively good scores (41% partially transposed).

The key takeaway from the Western Balkans is that Serbia is far ahead of the rest, likely thanks to its key role as a transit country. Albania also performs well in adopting EU regulations. The others have fewer incentives to align themselves, and are therefore behind. The idea is that aligning with EU regulations will open up rail markets and allow for more competitive business, but success also depends on the rate of implementation in neighbouring countries, Transport Community points out.

“These times demand resilient railways that can withstand the growth of military transport”, Aartsen explained. “Much military equipment enters Europe through Dutch ports. The North Sea-Baltic Corridor is the most obvious route for eastbound transportation.”

“It is important that military transports do not encounter any bottlenecks”, Aartsen continued. “European cooperation is enormously important for that.”

Military transport simulations

Aartsen’s appeal was addressed to colleagues in Belgium, Germany, Poland, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – all countries that are involved with the North-Sea Baltic Corridor. It has over 9,000 kilometres of rail infrastructure, and over 82,000 trains ran along the corridor last year.

Recently, the Netherlands itself conducted a study into the removal of bottlenecks for military rail transportation. It found that measures are needed to make the railways more resilient and suitable for military freight. The study suggested a minimum investment of 600 million euros into physical infrastructure and the improvement of security systems and processes.

The Dutch government is currently working to implement priority access for military transportation on the railways. That should prevent military trains from having to stop at the border due to paperwork. The infrastructure and defense ministries, together with infrastructure manager ProRail, are working to simulate military transports to identify bottlenecks. They are also working on a resilience strategy to curb hybrid threats.

“The Corridor is committed to fulfilling the requirements of the revised TEN-T Regulation, ensuring a dwell time of less than 25 minutes and a 75% arrival punctuality by 2030”, the NSRM announcement reads. The CEOs also emphasised the need for RFC-like cooperation after 2030 and requested the development of a design for such future cooperation.

Organisational structure

The RFC NSRM is managed by a joint office. Its Management Board represents the infrastructure managers and allocation bodies. The Executive Board consists of representatives from the involved transport ministries. Lastly, railway undertakings and terminals and ports are represented in advisory groups.

The NSRM spans more than 12,150 kilometres of rail infrastructure and accounts for over a quarter of all European RFC routes. It has 22 border crossings and involves 11 infrastructure managers and allocation bodies. Over 120,000 international freights travel on the corridor annually, according to RFC NSRM, which makes it the “most frequented route in Europe”.

“This is about faster and safer travel for passengers, in modern conditions of comfort; stimulating trade and cross-border connectivity, by facilitating the transport of goods to the European Union; integrating the Republic of Moldova into the European Union’s core TEN-T network, which will increase economic competitiveness and attractiveness for investment”, the Moldovan infrastructure ministry stated.

Strategic alignment

“The new Chișinău-Ungheni line will represent not only a technical innovation for the national railway infrastructure, but also a strategic project that aligns the Republic of Moldova with European transport standards”, the ministry continued.

“Through this investment, the country will have a direct and efficient connection with the member states of the European Union, strengthening both the mobility of citizens and long-term economic prospects.”

For now, a pre-feasibility study is being carried out with help of the EU’s Eastern Partnership Investment Facility for Connectivity (EPIC), Moldovan media say.

However, the commissioning of the Trento bypass has now been shifted four years, from 2026 to 2030. The initial 2026 deadline would have allowed Italy to finance the project through Italy’s recovery and resilience plan (PNRR). Unfortunately, respecting this deadline turned out to be impossible, which means that the money needs to come from somewhere else. The Italian infrastructure manager RFI is still guaranteeing the resources needed, but some might see this as a missed opportunity.

Salerno-Reggio Calabria railway

Regarding the Salerno-Reggio Calabria, RFI just announced an investment of 1,6 billion euros for the construction of the Santomarco Tunnel, a 22-kilometre section north of the port of Gioia Tauro. The Santomarco Tunnel is just a small part of the whole future Salerno-Reggio Calabria line. The opening of the tunnel is planned for 2032, while it is more complicated to estimate when the full upgrade of the 445-kilometre line between Salerno and Reggio Calabria will be completed.

The new infrastructure will create a high-capacity, high-speed line next to or replacing the current one, built in the late 1800s. Building new infrastructure along this vital axis for southern Italy has always been difficult. For example, the construction of the highway between the two cities was quite the ordeal, as it was a seemingly never ending process stretching from the 1960s to just a few years ago. Hopefully for the rail industry, building the railway line will be a smoother process, but only time will tell.

T&E’s report argues that the EU’s current rail funding model is imbalanced. Between 2021 and 2023, €6.6 billion in total was allocated to large-scale projects including Rail Baltica, the Brenner Base Tunnel, and the Fehmarnbelt tunnel — each with price tags over €1 billion and timelines stretching into the 2030s. In contrast, dozens of lower-cost but critical upgrades received far less support, ERTMS upgrades in particular, says T&E.

Big projects, big delays

According to the report, these megaprojects, though essential to completing the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), are “capital-intensive” and slow to deliver benefits. Rail Baltica alone accounted for nearly one-fifth of all CEF rail funding in the period, yet its completion has now been pushed to 2035. The Brenner Base Tunnel has been delayed by close to 20 years and is now aiming to be completed in 2032.

In one recent funding round, demand for CEF transport funds was triple the available budget, underscoring the need for more strategic allocations. T&E argues that placing greater focus on short- and medium-term projects could accelerate connectivity and reduce emissions more quickly.

Carlos Rico, rail policy officer at T&E, said: “Megaprojects have helped give rail the boost it needs, but they’re draining resources from other vital parts of the network. The EU must address this imbalance and ensure that the Connecting Europe Facility supports all necessary upgrades.”

‘Key upgrades’, less money

Among non-megaproject initiatives, track electrification emerged as the top-funded upgrade, securing €3.1 billion (20% of CEF funds which went to rail), followed by line speed improvements with €2.8 billion (18%). However, most projects aiming to fill missing high-speed rail links are still at the study stage, with construction not yet underway.

The report identifies 84 projects as “key upgrades”, targeting goals such as boosting capacity, improving line speeds, and standardising track gauges. Yet the average funding per upgrade project was just €70 million, far below the nearly €1 billion average for each megaproject.

Signalling stuck in the slow lane

Perhaps most concerning to T&E is the lack of progress on rolling out the EU’s standardised signalling system, the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS). Between 2021 and 2023, just €0.7 billion—or 3% of the CEF Transport envelope—was directed toward ERTMS deployment.

2024’s preliminary figures show a boost for ERTMS, which the NGO calls a “positive development that puts it on a hopeful path”. However, they state “ERTMS funding is still trailing behind other essential upgrades, as it received only close to a third of the funds directed to rail electrification”.  That is despite its role as a legal requirement on core TEN-T corridors by 2030 and a pillar of cross-border rail interoperability.

The report notes that countries such as Germany, France, and Poland continue to lag behind on ERTMS implementation. T&E recommends integrating the system into military mobility funding to enhance cyber resilience and dual-use potential.

The next EU budget

With more than three quarters of CEF funds having been spent in its first three years, it is currently unable to properly fund the adaptations needed to adapt the infrastructure to the challenges of today, says the report.  “While frontloading investments makes sense to effectively kick-start infrastructure projects, it leaves the CEF vulnerable to unexpected developments.”

Looking ahead to the next EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) in July 2025, T&E is calling for a rebalanced approach. First of all, the next round of CEF should have a larger budget to reflect the higher ambition that resulted from the revision of the TEN-T regulation, argues T&E. The advocate group for clean transport and energy estimates that a 25% increase in the CEF rail budget could double funding for crucial upgrades, without cutting off support to necessary megaprojects.

The future of dedicated transport funding under CEF has been shaky recently, with the European Commission initially dubbing whether to instead go for national and regional investment plans and thus dissolve the fund into a broader pot. From recent leaked draft legislation outlining the next long-term budget strategy, reported by Euractiv and Politico, it appears that CEF Transport will still have its place, however.

In T&E’s view, CEF Transport is more important than ever, but the current model is oversubscribed, fragmented, and not delivering the rapid integration the EU needs.  Carlos Rico: “Boosting rail is vital for Europe’s economy and defence, but funding must match infrastructure goals. The EU budget, high-speed rail plan, and the Military Mobility strategy should prioritise key upgrades and dual-use projects.”