A new chapter begins

Today, I am honoured to start my mandate as Executive Director of the European Union Agency for Railways. 

After 11 years working with dedicated colleagues and partners, I am excited to lead ERA into its next chapter - with a clear focus on making rail safer, smarter, and more connected across Europe. 

My vision:

• Optimal role for rail in Europe’s sustainable, resilient transport mix
• More people and goods moving by rail on time, safely at competitive prices
• A strengthened end-to-end business case for rail 

My priorities:

• Supporting the European Commission policy agenda for the challenging and ambitious tasks driven by or involving rail for the years to come (ERTMS implementation, HSR, data & digitalisation, cybersecurity, dual use, resilience)
• Working closely with Member States: to understand local needs and realities, and build capacity for increasing safety and removing persisting cross-border bottlenecks
• Taking costs down from the railway sector: promoting technical standardisation, ensuring regulatory stability over longer cycles to protect investments, reducing red tape
• Smart deployment of innovative solutions 

Looking forward to working with you all on this journey.

This article was published as part of the On Track with the Director page, a personal window into the thoughts, insights, and takeaways of Oana Gherghinescu, Executive Director of ERA.