“The title Rail Person of the Year came as a surprise to me,” says Marieke Koekkoek, former Member of Parliament for Volt. “But it is an honor. During my time in Parliament, I discovered that the rail sector is a world where people work with enormous dedication. As an MP, I was able to contribute to putting European rail transport more firmly on the map. I found it a wonderful and important task to bridge the gap between the rail sector and politics.”

European rail vision is lacking

Koekkoek joined the House of Representatives in 2021 on behalf of Volt. Because Volt is a European party, it was only natural that it would delve into cross-border cooperation. One of the party’s ambitions is to make European rail transport function properly. “Rail is a complex and technical domain, and an overarching and integrated European rail vision is lacking. As a result, bottlenecks persist, ranging from poor connections between countries to unequal priority between passenger trains and freight transport. Everyone agrees that the future of freight transport lies on the rails because it is more sustainable and safer, yet the development of a well-functioning European rail network is stagnating,” says Koekkoek.

Initiative memorandum

The idea to bring about change in this regard culminated in the initiative memorandum ‘All Signals on Green’, which outlines the steps that must be taken to make the European rail network successful. An initiative memorandum is an official proposal by a Member of Parliament in which a vision, the problem, and possible solutions for a specific subject are elaborated. “Writing such a memorandum forces you to truly understand the entire system: passengers, goods, infrastructure, regulations, and cooperation. We worked on this for almost a year. We held discussions, conducted analyses, and wrote this into an accessible document. The memorandum was submitted in 2023,” says Koekkoek. Although the cabinet fell shortly thereafter, the debate on European rail continued nonetheless. “We set aside a day in the House to discuss international train connections and freight transport. As a result, motions were adopted, for example regarding the more equal treatment of freight transport, which often has to wait in line when passenger trains need space. The cabinet is now really getting to work on that.”

Entrepreneurial spirit

What struck Koekkoek most during her exploration of European rail is the entrepreneurial spirit of railway workers. “People often look to the layer above them when a challenge arises: ‘just solve this for us.’ With the railways, you see the opposite. People are used to systems not being perfect. So they seek each other out. Even competitors work together because they have shared interests. Everyone is looking for solutions to make the railway function as well as possible.” Now is therefore the time to take decisive action, the former Member of Parliament believes. “The European Commission has launched a plan to elevate European rail as an instrument to achieve climate targets and improve transport safety. It is important for Member States to get on board with this and commit to these long-term objectives. Of course, train ticket prices need to come down, but do not lose sight of freight transport in the process. That broader picture must be safeguarded by politicians, and I am proud to have been able to contribute to that.”

Mike van der Kooij together with the three other winners: Robbe Van Grembergen, Marieke Koekkoek and Daan van de Kar.