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Operations & Interoperability
No stops at network interfaces; rolling stock and drivers ready for the new line; harmonised operating rules for seamless management Hamburg/Maschen-Malmö.
The Femern Belt Platform unites railway undertakings, terminal operators, infrastructure managers and customers to make the new Femern Belt Fixed Link seamless, interoperable and commercially powerful, across borders, from day one.
A voluntary cooperation of Europe's leading rail stakeholders
To make the new infrastructure useable, operational and beneficial for customers, the project needs strong, market-oriented cooperation among all stakeholders at EU, national and local levels.
The Platform creates the forum where stakeholders and customers together raise the rail-related issues that determine the success of the Femern Belt Fixed Link and its feeder lines, addressing operational, technical and legal barriers early, and aligning capabilities and capacity to real customer needs.
An open table for customers & operators.
Facilitating customer input and integrating operational stakeholders into the project.
Capacity matched to market demand.
Aligning infrastructure capabilities and capacity to the genuine needs of the market.
No barriers across the border.
Minimising operational, technical and legal barriers for seamless cross-border rail.
The European Green Deal sets the destination, a climate-neutral continent by 2050. As one of the most sustainable transport modes, rail is central to getting there.
of the EU's total emissions come from transport.
rail's share of overall EU transport emissions.
rail freight traffic targeted by 2050.
high-speed rail traffic targeted by 2050.
Source: European Green Deal & the EU Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy.
Each group meets roughly every two months, open to all stakeholders, with a strong focus on operational stakeholders and customers, to remove a specific class of barrier between Hamburg/Maschen and Malmö.
No stops at network interfaces; rolling stock and drivers ready for the new line; harmonised operating rules for seamless management Hamburg/Maschen-Malmö.
A realistic, comprehensive capacity framework for the whole corridor, with attractive timetabling for cross-border freight and passenger services, matched to market demand.
National legal expertise clearing the regulatory path, cross-border agreements, UIC rules and interoperability questions resolved before they slow operations.
Bringing the corridor to market, promoting the platform's work across channels and keeping every stakeholder informed, aligned and engaged.
“The Fehmarn Belt link will have an immense effect on the transport flows between Scandinavia and Central Europe. It has a high priority for the EU and will contribute not only to economic growth and job creation, but also to the EU goals of reducing harmful emissions.”
Pat Cox · European Coordinator, Scandinavian-Mediterranean Corridor · 2019
The Platform adds no new costs and creates no bureaucracy. It is a voluntary cooperation under the coordination of the TEN-T Scandinavian-Mediterranean Corridor and the ScanMed Rail Freight Corridors, extending the Femern Belt Fixed Link project to every relevant operator and to its neighbouring countries.
Enhanced customer involvement aligns infrastructure capabilities and capacity to real market needs.
Minimising operational, technical and legal barriers for seamless international rail connections.
Analysing and maximising the path capacities the new infrastructure makes available across the network.
A Corridor initiative co-financed by the European Union under the Trans-European Transport Network.
The plenary session, open to all interested customers, market representatives and operational stakeholders. Held at least once a year; may adopt resolutions and recommendations.
Responsible for the overall coordination of the Platform, resolving open questions with the infrastructure project and setting the agenda for the plenary sessions. Meets at least yearly.
Four expert groups meeting roughly every two months to deliver the substance, operations, capacity, legal and communication, reporting progress upward each year.
Europe sets course for a climate-neutral continent by 2050.
The Memorandum of Understanding is signed in Vienna, establishing the Femern Belt Platform.
Governance formalised; the four Working Groups become operational.
The Femern Belt Forum holds its first plenary session in Copenhagen.
Stakeholders gather in Copenhagen for the Femern Belt Forum.
A barrier-free corridor ready for the market when the Fixed Link opens.
Meeting minutes, letters and other documents are published here and made available on request.
The Femern Belt Forum is open to all customers, market representatives and operational stakeholders. Registration for the 2027 session is not open yet.
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