The ETCR (European Training Centre for Railways) is an independent association of companies from within the European railway sector. The aim of the ETCR is to provide upcoming and existing managers the opportunity to study and learn about European legislation with regards to transport as well as the latest developments which affect the railway sector within the Member States of the European Union.

The first ETCR seminar was organised in 1963.

 

ETCR COMMISSION MEMBERS

 

Mr Colin CHARMAN
President of ETCR
Colin Charman followed the course in 1992. He has worked in the UK rail industry for over 35 years and is experienced in rail operations (rules and safety) as well as station and people management. He became a member of the ETCR Commission in 2002, before becoming Secretary and then President in 2015. He is also a Lead Tutor with the Institution of Railway Operators.

 

Mr Sjaak HEIJSTEK
Member of ETCR Commission
Sjaak Heijstek is since 2011 member of the ETCR Commission. He graduated from the course in Brugge in 2004. He works with ProRail (Dutch Infrastructure Manager). Mr. Heijstek worked during his Railway career since 1985 in the field of logistics. From 2010 till 2020 he was Manager Capacity Allocation and responsible for the capacity allocation process in the Netherlands. From 2020 on he works as an advisor to the board of ProRail.

 
 

Mr Mikael PRENLER
President of the Former Trainees Committee
Mikael Prenler followed the course in 1992 and became a member of the ETCR Commission in 2015. He is chairman of ETCR Alumni, the group which is responsible for organising ETCR Former Trainees Day every year, and represents ETCR Alumni in the Commission. Mikael Prenler has experiences from different parts of the railway sector since 1980, and works today as a senior consultant in public procurement with special focus on public transport, especially rail traffic.

 

Mr Axel KIESE
Member of ETCR Commission
Axel Kiese joined the ETCR Commission in 2016, after attending the course in 2011. He studied and worked in different places, such as Germany, France, England, and West Africa. Being a trained transport engineer and MBA holder, he now works for Swiss Railways SBB CFF FFS representing the owner of passenger trains. As part of this, he is closely involved in international rolling stock entering and leaving Switzerland.

 

Mr Anders SVENSSON
Member of ETCR Commission
Anders Svensson attended the course in 2004. He has been working since 2010 at Trafikverket, the Swedish Transport Administration; he is a Chief Strategist at the central function Strategic Development. Trafikverket is responsible for the Swedish state-owned road and railways. Anders has worked in the Swedish rail industry since 1991, in fact, prior to Trafikverket, he worked until 2010 at Banverket, the Swedish Rail Administration. He has been a member of the ETCR Commission for over ten years.

  

Mr László JAKAB
Member of ETCR Commission
László Jakab is since 2011 member of the ETCR Commission. He graduated from the course in Brugge in 2006. He works with RTB CARGO (RU in freight transportation with market presence in 5 countries). Mr. Jakab started his Railway career in 1998 at the basics in a marshalling yard in Sopron before attending the Vienna University for Business Administration. After his studies, he started working as sales and project manager participating in several international freight-related projects at a Hungarian RU called GYSEV CARGO.

 

 

Mr Jan MÖLMANN
Member of ETCR Commission
Jan Möllmann has been a member of the ETCR Commission since 2011 after graduating from the respective course in Bruges in 2001. He has 25 years of business experience - working for public transport authorities and with transport operators. Since 2016, Jan has been working for Deutsche Bahn AG in the field of European Policy, Projects and Advocacy. He represents the interests of the railway sector at ERA (European Railway Agency), the EC (European Commission) and sector organisations. Before 2016, he has been active in EU public affairs for 10 years as Head of Transport Policy at Arriva. During that time, he also took the role as Secretary General of EPTO (European Passenger Operators) and worked as senior advisor with UITP (Union Internationale de Transport Public).

 

 

Mr Carlos SARABIA VIVES
Member of ETCR Commission
Carlos Sarabia joined ETCR commission in 2018. He graduated from the training course in Brugge in 2006. He is the Maintenance Manager for the classic railway network in Barcelona, responsible for infrastructure, track, energy, signalling and Barcelona's control centre. He has been working in ADIF (Spanish Railway Infrastructure Manager) since 2004, where he has also led the project management department. He is master in civil engineering, graduate in Economics and graduate in History.

 

 

Ms Maaike COUCKE
ETCR Secretary
Maaike Coucke joined the ETCR Commission in 2015 and is the ETCR Secretary. She currently works as Senior Legal Counsel for the Belgian incumbent railway company SNCB. She is the team leader liberalization and competition law and ensures the drafting and negotiating of new international contracts. As corporate secretary she writes the minutes and publishes the reports and decisions of the Board and General Assembly of BeNe. She’s the contact person for internships & placements and a frequently asked member of the jury board for internal and external recruitment exams. Maaike is known as a natural team player with good communication skills and a keen eye for accuracy.

  
 

Mr Thomas NYGREEN
Member of ETCR Commission


  
 

João GASPAR
Member of ETCR Commission


  
 

Lenie Manusiwa
Member of ETCR Commission


  
 

Helena Kyster-Hansen
Member of ETCR Commission