Romanian Transport Minister Overhauls Railway System with New Accountability Measures

Romania's interim Minister of Transport, Radu Mironu, has announced a series of reforms aimed at increasing accountability within the national railway company, CFR.

A key initiative involves assigning a specific director from CFR to each of the 1,265 trains operating daily across Romania. This measure seeks to establish clear lines of responsibility for the smooth operation of each service. "I have ordered that each train out of the 1,265 that run in a day will have a responsible person assigned with the function of director," Mironu stated. He further explained that directors at regional and central levels will be accountable for specific trains, allowing for easy identification of the responsible party when problems arise.

Directors who are repeatedly associated with train issues will face sanctions. "Additionally, for situations that we will continue to monitor, directors responsible for trains where problems are observed to be repeated will be sanctioned," Mironu added. He emphasized that the goal is to move away from a system where directors lack accountability for core operational aspects that directly impact passengers.

Furthermore, Mironu announced a simplification of the compensation process for passengers on international routes experiencing significant delays. Previously, seeking compensation for delays exceeding one hour involved a cumbersome in-person process at Bucharest's Gara de Nord. Now, passengers can submit claims through an online form available on the CFR Călători website. "From today onwards, there is a form, you fill in the necessary identification data for the refund, and CFR Călători will fulfill its obligation to pay when it is at fault," the minister declared, aiming to make the process more accessible and efficient.