After Noah's Train was ceremoniously received at the Brussels railway station on 20 February, the annual European Railway Award ceremony took place at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Brussels. The Community of European Railways (CER), together with the European Railway Industries Federation (UNIFE), organised this year's award ceremony. CER is also a supporter of the European Rail Freight Forward initiative.
The European Railway Award attracted over 500 interested guests from politics and the European railway sector. The atmospheric evening began with a panel discussion on "A strong rail network for European mobility" involving leading EU transport policy-makers and stakeholders from the rail sector. Henrik Hololei, Director General of the European Commission for Mobility and Transport, stressed that the promotion of the railways was an absolute priority. To date, more than 16 billion euros have been invested in more than 250 railway projects. Karima Delli, MEP and Chair of the Committee on Transport and Tourism, stated that rail is the key to combating climate change. That is why rail needs fair competition with air and road transport. In addition, Sabrina Soussan, President of the Union of European Railway Industries (UNIFE), Crister Fritzson, President of the European Railways (CER), and Matthias Ruete, coordinator of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS), focused their speeches on the enormous importance of digitisation in rail transport.
The European Railway Award 2019 goes to...
This year's European Railway Award, presented for the twelfth time, went to Catherine Trautmann for her long-standing support of the European railway supply industry and a flourishing rail network for passenger and freight transport throughout Europe. A former Vice-Chairwoman of the European Parliament's Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, Catherine Trautmann has always been a driving force for the European rail industry. Since October 2014, Ms Trautmann has been supporting the railway sector as coordinator for the North Sea-Baltic Sea TEN-T corridor. She is best known for her involvement in the Eastern European TGV project in France, for her support of Shift2Rail and most recently for her crucial role in the Rail Baltica project.
Background
Every year, the European Railway Award attracts hundreds of guests from all over Europe, including high-ranking politicians and transport operators. The award is accompanied by prize money, which is donated to a non-profit organisation selected by the winner - Catherine Trautmann donated the total amount of 10,000 euros to the European Disability Forum, an NGO that has represented the interests of around 80 million Europeans with physical disabilities since 1996. The jury of the European Railway Award consists of CEOs of the railway industry, political decision-makers at EU level, former winners and selected journalists.
