The European Commission (EC) recently approved an aid scheme for 45 million euros to boost the modal shift from road to rail in Portugal. The money will be allocated to the Railway Undertakings active in the country, which are Medway, a subsidiary of MSC, and Captrain Portugal, formerly known as Takargo Rail.
The scheme will have a duration of five years, with 9 million euros erogated per year until 2029. According to the EC, “the aid will have an ‘incentive effect’ as the beneficiaries must commit to reflecting the aid in offering lower prices in order to attract customers”.
Will this aid increase satisfaction?
Hopefully, the new scheme will provide some help to the Portuguese rail freight industry, which has seen dissatisfaction rates increase over the last few years. The main causes behind this dissatisfaction are the constant decreases in performance and volumes across the industry.
A couple of weeks ago, moreover, Medway, which is the most active rail freight operator in Portugal, threatened to leave the country and relocate in Spain. The company claimed that the Portuguese government did not hold their end of the bargain to protect the rail freight sector in the country.
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