Experts talking
05. 11. 2020
GATX is one of the largest freight wagon lessors in Europe. Johann Feindert, CEO of GATX Rail Europe, is a strong supporter of freight wagons as a sustainable mode of transport and is certain that the demand for rail freight transport will increase. Freight transport of all kinds is on the rise across the globe, so rail is proving more and more important as a mode of transport.
Johann Feindert, CEO of GATX Rail Europe, backs the increased efficiency that Digital Automatic Coupling will bring to the EU and help rail freight transport achieve a 30% modal share in the freight transport industry by 2030.
This is the only way we can secure the EU’s economic development with less congestion and less environmental pollution.
275 million tonnes of CO2 emissions are pumped into the air every year by the European land freight market, according to the coalition Rail Freight Forward. The environmental impact of this is colossal. If we’re going to reach our climate targets, we need low-emission engines like trains because:
When you measure the volume of tonnes of loads transported, you can see that rail freight only needs a minute amount of energy.
We are more global and more connected than ever, and this is increasing transport volumes. European land freight transport is set to increase by 30% by 2030; road freight transport basically cannot cope with this.
About 7% of all European transport services are carried out on Europe’s rivers. Low river levels brought about by climate change are making the situation worse for ships.
Road freight transport is the cause of 50,000 premature deaths a year in Europe and is a huge source of congestion on our roads. Rail freight transport is the answer.
Wagon lessors like GATX Rail Europe are essential for transporting goods by rail and are making big investments in wagon fleets that are more modern and perform even better. This makes them even more attractive as a provider.
Even noise, the most debated negative aspect of rail freight transport, is still three times better than road, since a much higher proportion of the European population lives closer to roads than to railway lines.
An increasing number of investments from the state and private companies like GATX in modern fleets help lower costs for customers and increase the attractiveness of rail over road.
