Seamless rail ticketing reaches new milestones
The Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) has today released its seventh progress report on the CER Ticketing Roadmap, confirming that European railways are successfully transitioning from conceptual planning to large-scale operational delivery of improved ticketing conditions for international travellers. Launched in 2021, the Roadmap has been guiding the sector’s work on enhancing the passenger experience within the Single European Railway Area.
As part of the CER Ticketing Roadmap, a first set of major milestones was set for the end of 2025. In pursuit of these targets, CER member railways have delivered significant improvements across the full passenger journey:
- Wider availability: A broader range of multi-operator tickets can now be booked in a single transaction, significantly improving access to cross-border travel.
- Extended booking horizons: The majority of CER members now offer the possibility to book tickets at least six months in advance, with several extending to twelve months.
- Real-time information: A custom-built information exchange platform is now operational, providing consistent real-time journey data across partner services.
- Enhanced protection: Participation in the Agreement on Journey Continuation (AJC) has expanded to 23 Railway Undertakings, covering over 90% of European passenger traffic. This ensures passengers can reach their destination at no extra cost in the event of a missed connection.
- Harmonised rules: Most rail operators now apply common rules on passenger luggage, disability cards, on-board pets and age categories in ticket fares.
The Open Sales and Distribution Model (OSDM) remains the critical technical enabler for the Roadmap’s success. Developed in collaboration with ticket vendors and retailers, OSDM is now a fully available multilateral solution for the exchange of ticketing data that replaces proprietary interfaces, making it easier for distributors to offer comprehensive rail and multimodal portfolios. The recent recognition of OSDM in EU technical regulation (the revised Telematics TSI) was an important step forward, preserving the sector’s significant investments in this interoperable standard.
While the sector focuses on finalising its 2025 goals, CER is simultaneously launching the Roadmap’s second phase (2026–2030). This new work programme, supported by a dedicated Implementation Handbook, aims to strengthen rail’s position in a multimodal context. Key actions for 2030 include multimodal journey planning, the pan-European rollout of OSDM-online, and the development of single digital tickets usable across multiple transport modes.
CER Executive Director Alberto Mazzola said: “The full and timely implementation of the CER Ticketing Roadmap remains a top priority for our members. This latest progress report demonstrates that coordinated industry action delivers measurable passenger benefits more effectively than prescriptive regulation. A rise in international ticket sales is already being reported by early adopters of OSDM, up to 75% in the first 2 months of 2026 versus the same period in 2024. As we enter the next phase, we remain committed to making rail the backbone of a competitive and sustainable multimodal transport system in Europe.”
The 7th Monitoring Report on the implementation of the CER Ticketing Roadmap is accessible here.
A fact sheet outlining rail ticketing improvements since the publication of the CER Ticketing Roadmap in 2021 is available here.
Download below the press release.