Train slot explained

In rail transport, a train slot is a license that allows its holder, usually a railway company, to run a train on a specific section of track at a specific time, similar to an airport slot in civil aviation.^[1] Rail infrastructure companies such as Network Rail in Great Britain and DB Netze in Germany own the tracks and stations in their area of responsibility and make money by selling train slots to companies which operate freight and passenger services.^[2]

Notes and References

1. April Kuo . Elise Miller-Hooks . Kuilin Zhang . Hani Mahmassani . Hani Mahmassani . amp . Train Slot Cooperation in Multicarrier, International Rail-Based Intermodal Freight Transport. Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board. 2043 . 2008. 2043. 31–40. 10.3141/2043-04. 4 May 2014.
2. Paolo Beria . Emile Quinet . Gines de Rus . Carola Schulze . amp . A comparison of rail liberalisation levels across four European countries. Research in Transportation Economics. September 2012. 36. 1. 110–120. 10.1016/j.retrec.2012.03.014.