Railway transport in the conditions of globalisation

Abstract

At the beginning of the new millennium, the system of global economy entered the new stage of changes. Structural changes that characterise the fields of global production and international trade affected the field of transport largely too. As the globalisation of international trade intensifies, the movement of resources and goods in international trade is facilitated in parallel. Transport is the ground for the formation of local and international market which assists in the development of market economy and which, along with trade, is influenced by the globalisation processes. In the field of railway transport, globalisation is associated with the development of railway network in the international space and building of transcontinental railway corridors in order to integrate global trade regions. Globalisation processes are of great importance to railway transport as railway transport is an alternative kind of conveyance for sea transport in the shipment of goods and freight in long distances. Railway transport plays an important role in the context of globalisation processes lately and becomes a serious competitor for sea transport. Railway transport services are in very great request when it is needed to convey freight of big value in big distances in a short period of time. In this case railways offer many advantages. The article also analyses the globalisation processes related with changes taking place in the global economic space, due to which new freight carriage tendencies form in global markets, global transport networks and logistics chains. This determines the unavoidable transformations in the railway transport service sector and the demand for them while servicing global markets and also increasing competition of railway transport sector as well as an attractiveness to the customers, which are using of railway transport services.