Reform and regulation of the Portuguese rail sector. What has failed?

In 1998, and in the context of the European Directives, a reform of the Portuguese rail sector was implemented, through the vertical separation of the two basic rail activities, and an access charging system with economic regulation was introduced. This study sought to understand the Portuguese reform and its outcomes, particularly, at the level of the infrastructure manager's productivity, where losses were detected. Although access charges are being defined under a price-cap regulation regime since 2005, no progress was found in the cost recovery by the infrastructure manager. The paper concludes with suggestions to improve the current regulatory model.