railway group Helvetic SBB wishes an participation of the government in support of the rail shipment goods



Railway group Helvetic SBB CFF FFS wishes an participation of the government in support of the rail shipment goods, field that must tackle to the increasing competitiveness of the road haulage benefitted from the strengthening of the Swiss franc and from the decrease of the cost of the fuel.

The loss of value of the euro in confronts of the Swiss franc - it has explained the railway group - in transit has series repercussions on the railway traffic goods through Switzerland. With the abolition of the fixed exchange rate of 1,20 franchi Swiss for every euro, to January 2015 the euro, which European currency of reference for the field of the transports, has lost 17% of its value and if reference is made 2009, when the frank change/euro was pairs to 1,65, the loss of value is attested to 40% quite. In practice - it has specified SBB CFF FFS - this means that today the returns in euro have a decidedly inferior weight regarding the costs in franchi. The services offered from the railroads goods that carry out transports of transit in Switzerland are paid by the customers mostly in euro, while the expenses for the Swiss section of the transport are in franchi. Draft in the first place of the expenses for the machinists, the locomotives, the traces and the energy. "The consequence - it has emphasized the company - is an enormous pressure on the margins. In these conditions it is scarcely succeeded to lead an activity of transit in a position to covering the costs that it generates. During the last few years the railroads have already made a lot in order to increase their competitiveness and will continue to engage themselves in such sense. However the participation possibilities in the short term are limited".

SBB CFF FFS has specified that the cost of the services of rail shipment of transit is increased of 17%. "Draft - it has found the company - of a disadvantage that cannot be compensated to light of the sour competition of the transport on the road. Moreover in the past couple of years, with the reduction of the price of the crude oil, also the prices of the diesel engine are diminished of 22%. To benefit of this situation it is above all the traffic goods on the road. The effect of the strong franc makes to feel also on the traffic goods on the road that it crosses Switzerland, as it provokes an increase also of the tax on the which proportioned heavy traffic to performances (TTPCP) for the companies that they pay in euro. However this greater burden turns out halved thanks to the advantage obtained from the decrease of the price of the diesel engine".

The railway group has evidenced that "taking into consideration the three effects frank euro to take it in turns/, of the inferior price of the diesel engine and of the increase of the TTPCP, a relative increase of the railway transit regarding those street pairs to 11% emerges some, than it cannot be counterbalanced quickly. From the moment that the market can react very fastly to this improvement of the competitiveness - it has observed SBB CFF FFS - is the danger of a return on the road of the arranged transports and, consequently, a solid loss of traffic on track in transit through Switzerland".

SBB CFF FFS wishes therefore "that the Confederation verifies eventual measures in a position to reducing the competitive disadvantage of the arranged transport. Between the several possibilities - it has suggested the railway group - they are signaled, for example, the temporary suspension of the reduction planned of the incentives to the development of traffic the arranged and sensitive relief for the traffic goods on track in the within of the review of the system of the prices of traces 2017". Moreover, second the company, "is important that the new law on the transport of the goods national is launched quickly in order to assure the existence of expectable conditions in future picture for this field".