ECG — 2025-11-25
News from ECG
ECG has released its new “Rail Catalogue,” a practical tool that gathers essential information on European automotive compounds equipped with rail tracks. For the first time, rail operators, logistics service providers and OEMs can access consistent and centralised data that supports better planning, smoother communication and more reliable rail operations.
The need for such a tool has become increasingly clear. Rail operators, OEMs and terminals often rely on different and incomplete information, which creates planning uncertainties and frequent delays. Missing details about track lengths, available equipment, opening hours or the right contacts can lead to changes at short notice, inefficient use of resources and unnecessary waiting times. The Rail Catalogue helps address these issues by bringing the most relevant operational data together in one place.
The catalogue is the first major outcome of the ECG Rail Initiative, created in 2024 under the leadership of Andreas Sundl, COO of Hödlmayr International. The initiative builds on key findings from Infront Consulting’s Expert Study on Finished Vehicle Logistics, which highlighted bottlenecks at ports and inland compounds as a major barrier to rail transport. To tackle this, ECG has collected detailed, rail-related information from compounds across Europe, including track numbers and lengths, loading and unloading equipment, opening hours and contact details.
The Rail Catalogue is easy to use. Compounds are listed by country, and users can also view all compounds within one country by clicking on a map. The information supports smooth communication between LSPs and terminals and provides clear visibility of available infrastructure, equipment and the closest main rail station. This helps LSPs plan more effectively and gives OEMs valuable input when setting up their transport operations.
The catalogue is initially available as an Excel file to all stakeholders in the Finished Vehicle Logistics sector. It will soon be integrated into the ECG Survey website, which is being developed into a comprehensive knowledge platform for the automotive logistics community.
While many structural challenges in rail transport remain outside the control of the industry, such as infrastructure works and the limited availability of modern wagons, ECG believes that better cooperation and more harmonised operational practices can already deliver meaningful progress. With the Rail Catalogue and the wider Rail Initiative, ECG aims to strengthen the role of rail in Europe’s long-term logistics strategy and ensure that it becomes a more reliable and efficient partner for the automotive sector.
ECG thanks all companies that contributed to the Rail Catalogue, and in particular Kai Birnstein, Senior Vice President for Automotive at DB Cargo, and Frank Lehner, Head of International Business Development for Rail at Bertani Trasporti, for steering its development.