Why do "open-access operators" (private companies) run passenger trains in Europe

In the European Union, I see that there are numerous "open-access operators", which are private companies that operate passenger trains.

Why do they do that?

A. Are the privately-run passenger trains actually profitable, with ticket sales and other passenger-related revenues outpacing all expenses, including capital costs and depreciation?

or

B. Do taxpayer subsidies plus passenger-related revenues result in profits?

I'm curious as to why this model works in the EU, but it hasn't happened much in the US (except for Brightline).

the private operators pretty much try to nuzzle in on market cause the European Union lets them.
they get same subsidy as state railroad per passenger but are not subject to same railroad rules .
they are often more like bus company with choo choo's on branch lines .
On main lines they are not always successful, and a lot of companies already had to fold.

SR: Post this subject in the "Worldwide Railfan" Forum section for more exposure and responses.

As for myself I am interested in the privatized services in the UK and their relationship
with the Government-owned Network Rail...MACTRAXX

note that GP just took over all services from private operators , not clear on details but....

Thank you- especially Dutch Railnut. Great responses.

https://westbahn.at/en

I have ridden this outfit Salzburg-Linz. The best I can say is "it's cheaper" than same ride on OBB. If traveling to Vienna, they terminate at a station to the West of the "Stadtmitte", Wien-Wstbahnhof (they have temporary authority to operate to the Hbf during the COVID).

It came to be account the EU's "privatization initiative", allowing private operators access to the State owned ROW's.

There was an English speaking Conductrix (married to a retired USA Sergeant) who was more than happy to share how this outfit exists in competition with the State owned OBB and operating over the State owned ROW. I told her this was exact opposite where Amtrak (she's ridden on the Acela) mostly operates on private sector railroads (except the Acela). I asked her about dispatching. "We have equal rights". "We have taken them to Court over this when we thought we didn't have them". I asked the what if they flop? "Have you any seniority rights on the OBB". "No, but were qualified on their Rules, and I'd like to think they'd hire us before anyone else".

Private Open Access passenger operators are not exactly as common as you might think, in Europe. There are a few, although there might be less as a result of the Covid-19 crisis. Some examples are FlixTrain in Germany, Westbahn in Austria, and Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori in Italy. Many others are simply owned by the National Railway companies of other European countries. For example Abellio which operates Scotrail in Scotland is a wholly owned subsidiary of Nederlandse Spoorweg, the national railway company of The Netherlands. The French and German national railway companies also own subsidiaries that operate passenger trains in other European countries. France is one European country where this does not happen, at least not yet. Though French Regions and Provinces are pushing hard for competitive bidding to operate regional services within their boundaries. One reason is that in France SNCF charges the regions 2-3 times more per seat-mile to operate the services than similar trains in Germany. Also in Germany the Länder(States) are allowed to own the trains that operate their services, so that if they decide to change service providers they can transfer the equipment to the new company. This is not the case in France.

The Eu requires that member states separate their network (track , stations etc ) from the train running operation . The train operations must be open to any company in any country in the Eu.
If I look at Great Britain ( which is the only country I really know well ), they separated the 2 before the EU edict.They went further and privatized the Network as well . Few would disagree that part was an unmitigated disaster.
As far as the train operating companies go , its a mixed bag. The government subsidies all but 1 or 2 of the franchises. 3 or 4 of them have either pulled out or had their franchises revoked . not renewed. Most commentators would agree its pretty much 50 / 50 as to whether it has cost the taxpayer / passenger more or less than the old British Rail providing the same service. one part that has been successful for the private sector is the train leasing companies (mostly owned by banks ) , they seem to be raking it in. But again that money is ultimately coming from the government, again there is debate over whether it cost more or less than British rail building / procuring similar equipment .
In the end , I think the "privatization" is way more political / ideological , than economic / practical , and like I say pretty much 50 /50 .
Some discussion in the worldwide forum ( though we get somewhat sidetracked by nodding donkeys ).
https://www.railroad.net/viewtopic.php?f=149&t=167645

JayBee wrote: ↑Sun Apr 26, 2020 1:01 am Some examples are FlixTrain in Germany, Westbahn in Austria, and Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori in Italy.

FlixTrain does not run trains. They act as a marketing and sales front for Leo Express, which actually runs the trains - after buying up the insolvent company Locomore specifically for this purpose.

Taking Leo Express as an example for the opening post:

Leo Express runs a small number of private passenger services on rail in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany and Poland, as well as long-distance bus routes in these countries and to Austria and Ukraine. Small operation overall, including subsidiaries and leased units they have somewhere around 7 trainsets and 20 railcars in service. They transport 2.0-2.5 million passengers per year and have a market share of around 30% on their main corridor.

In 2018 they had an official revenue of 31 million USD and profit of about 3.5 million USD before tax and deprecation. Overall they tend to hover around the break-even line +-10% of revenue. They have a consolidated debt of probably around 25 million USD.

Their concept to become and remain profitable is trying to get into subsidized public transit contracts in the Czech Republic. They entered the first such contract last year.

Pre-COVID, my wife and I were planning a "bucket list" trip to the UK to see family, followed by a train trip to spend a few days in Rome then travel to Barcelona where we would board a transatlantic sea voyage back home. Of course this trip has all been postponed now. To get from Paris to Turin, there was a private operator named Thello that ran the only sleeping car service between France and Italy. However after reading the reviews on Tripadvisor and other places it became apparent this was a shoestring operation and would not be the romantic Orient Express experience by any means. There were numerous complaints about the quality of the service. We ended up choosing day trains with overnight in Turin instead. However we did plan on using Thello for their daytime service between Turin and Marseille for the travel between Rome and Barcelona.

If and when we resurrect this trip probably next year, it will be interesting to see what the landscape of train travel is like in Europe and in particular whether companies like Thello that were already on shaky ground will be able to survive.

jonnhrr wrote: ↑Tue May 12, 2020 7:03 am To get from Paris to Turin, there was a private operator named Thello that ran the only sleeping car service between France and Italy.

Thello is 100% owned by Italian state operator Trenitalia.

The company itself is fairly secure since Trenitalia was planning to use the brand to force its entry into the high-speed train market in France in the second half of this year.

JayBee wrote: ↑Sun Apr 26, 2020 1:01 am The French and German national railway companies also own subsidiaries that operate passenger trains in other European countries

The French national railway company, SNCF, owns Keolis, which runs the MBTA commuter rail here in Massachusetts.

kato wrote: ↑Sat May 09, 2020 5:20 am

JayBee wrote: ↑Sun Apr 26, 2020 1:01 am Some examples are FlixTrain in Germany, Westbahn in Austria, and Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori in Italy.

FlixTrain does not run trains. They act as a marketing and sales front for Leo Express, which actually runs the trains - after buying up the insolvent company Locomore specifically for this purpose.

Taking Leo Express as an example for the opening post:

Leo Express runs a small number of private passenger services on rail in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany and Poland, as well as long-distance bus routes in these countries and to Austria and Ukraine. Small operation overall, including subsidiaries and leased units they have somewhere around 7 trainsets and 20 railcars in service. They transport 2.0-2.5 million passengers per year and have a market share of around 30% on their main corridor.

In 2018 they had an official revenue of 31 million USD and profit of about 3.5 million USD before tax and deprecation. Overall they tend to hover around the break-even line +-10% of revenue. They have a consolidated debt of probably around 25 million USD.

Their concept to become and remain profitable is trying to get into subsidized public transit contracts in the Czech Republic. They entered the first such contract last year.

A post in the German railfan board Turntable Online (Drehscheibe), which is the German version of Railroad Net, indicates that FlixTrain might be a victim of Covid-19 and might be down for the count. Trains that used to be bookable in June and July are no longer so. Germany is now lifting Covid-19 restrictions. Whether or not Berlin throws some Euro's in Leo Expresses direction is not known.

https://www.drehscheibe-online.de/foren ... 02,9315889

Link is in German but Google Translate or Chrome with auto translate will give you a readable English translation.

Those are the former "HKX" routes run by company BTE (under Flixtrain branding since 2018, independent since 2012). BTE is a subsidiary of US investor RDC. BTE/RDC ended its cooperation with Flixtrain in April.

There are some suggestions Leo Express might try to run trains on the HKX routes under Flixtrain brand in the near future, although that is in my opinion rather doubtable as they don't have the material to do so.