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Archive Category: Rail

ebookers ties up with SilverRail, to sell rail tickets

Online travel agency ebookers has formed a partnership with SilverRail Technologies to offer domestic and international rail journeys.

The service is due to go live on all 12 ebookers’ European websites in 2012. ebookers will have access to all of SilverRail’s global connections, which currently include the UK, US, Canada, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Additional rail operators across Europe will be added in future.

ebookers’ rail search and booking will be powered by SilverCore, a global rail platform developed by SilverRail. SilverRail has built an integrated rail API that pulls in direct supplier connections, and standardises the search, booking and fulfilment process.

ebookers plan to offer stand-alone rail as well as packaged rail journeys including hotels and other travel products.

“Rail is fast becoming a popular mode of travel and we are excited by the prospect of being able to offer it to our customers across Europe,” said Tamer Tamar, President, ebookers.

Tamar added, “SilverRail has been able to solve issues around various complex rail ticketing systems, and the addition of rail to our product portfolio enhances our ‘book easier. travel happier’ value proposition.”

“Everyone is talking about rail as the way forward, yet none of the major online travel agents are able to sell it. There are a few one-off solutions that integrate a single rail operator, but this will be the first time multiple rail operators in multiple countries will be available through a single search,” said Aaron Gowell, CEO and co-founder of SilverRail Technologies.

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“The renaissance of rail is truly underway”

A pan-European rail passenger survey has highlighted that the opportunity for rail is clear as 77 percent of those surveyed would choose to catch an international high speed train instead of taking another means of transport, if the cost is competitive.

Thomas Drexler, head of Amadeus Rail, said that the renaissance of rail is truly underway.

According to Drexler, the next three years will see the transformation of rail as it firmly establishes itself as a truly international form of high speed travel.

The survey results provide insights into what rail travellers demand of rail companies in the future if they are to make rail a real option for cross-border journeys.

“The next frontier is to deliver a seamless travel experience based on knowing the needs and expectations of tomorrow’s traveller and this survey goes some way towards meeting that challenge,” said Drexler.

The survey from Amadeus, conducted by YouGov, demonstrated marked differences across all of the six countries polled – France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden and the UK.

Almost 60 percent of those surveyed indicated that they would like to be able to reserve “connecting rail travel and other modes of transport” (i.e. one ticket for every transport mode taken on one journey) in advance of their journey. Of the countries surveyed, Sweden (71 percent), Germany (64 percent) and Spain (63 percent) rated this option higher than any of the other services listed. Those surveyed also indicated they would like to pre-book “on-board entertainment or Wi-Fi” (46 percent), “fast track check-in and security” (38 percent) and “hotel bookings, transfers and travel insurance” (37 percent). Notably, the percentage of UK adults (17 percent) wanting “access to VIP and business lounges” was higher than in other countries.

Other findings:

• More than half (52 percent) of survey respondents indicated they expect rail providers to know their “preferred seat position and location”. Furthermore, knowledge of passengers’ “total travel itinerary” (46 percent) (i.e. connecting flights, hotel accommodation and car rental) and technology preferences (39 percent) were also identified as key pieces of information of which rail providers should be aware of. However, respondents in Spain (32 percent), France (26 percent) and Italy (25 percent) would like rail providers to be aware of their favourite destinations.
• Survey participants were asked what they expected to find at an international railway station by 2014. Over 70 per cent of those surveyed expect to find comfortable seating and relaxation areas. The second most popular service, mobile payments, was selected by two fifths of respondents (40 percent). Other services which people hoped to see in the future included a concierge service which was particularly popular amongst Italians (41 percent). Nearly a third of Spanish adults (31 percent) said they would expect a “gaming and entertainment suite”, in comparison to only one in fourteen German adults (7 percent).
• In addition to competitive pricing, respondents said they would choose a long distance, high speed, international train journey rather than flying or driving if it was a “more enjoyable and comfortable experience” (52 percent), had a “lower risk of disruption and cancellations” (51 percent) and if there was “seamless connections to other services (e.g. car rental, flights) to take you to your final destination” (46 percent).

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German rail and travel centers switch to Sabre

German rail network Deutsche Bahn (DB) has switched 204 of its railway station-based Travel Centres and 57 Reiseland Deutsche Bahn travel agencies to the Sabre global distribution system (GDS). The operation is one of Sabre Travel Network’s largest single European conversion exercises and all 261 new outlets are expected to be fully converted by Q3 2005, Sabre announced.

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American travel agents can now sell Eurostar rail

MIAMI -- North American travel agencies affiliated with Amadeus can now sell, price, book, and issue validated Eurostar rail documents independent of airline ticketing. Popular with American tourists, Eurostar is the high-speed train service linking London, Ashford, Paris, Brussels, Lille, Avignon, Calais, Disneyland Resort Paris and the French Alps.

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UK rail travellers want wireless broadband

LONDON -- Three out of four UK business rail travellers want to use Wi-Fi for Internet access on the move, believing on-train connectivity is a clear reason to choose rail travel over other forms of transport, according to research released by Broadreach Networks Limited. The findings come from the UK’s largest-ever study of the awareness and interest in Wi-Fi technology amongst business rail travellers, commissioned by Broadreach, the UK’s leading provider of Internet locations earlier this year.

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Train hotspots worth US$420 million by 2008

LEDBURY, UK -- Train travellers will be spending US$420 million per year by 2008 on in-transit wireless LAN hotspot services, according to the latest report from W-LAN experts BWCS. Figures from Railway Wireless LAN Services indicate that within five years 625 million people will be travelling on WiFi-enabled trains around the world every year.
Train hotspots worth US$420 million by 2008

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Wireless Internet tested at Paris metro stations

PARIS -- Cisco Systems is working with Naxos, one of two telecommunications subsidiaries of the Regie Autonome des Transports Parisiens (RATP), the Independent Paris Transport Authority, in a WiFi (wireless fidelity) test of local area network points deployed in the city's metro stations.

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