Asset management for the Dutch railway infrastructure

Asset management has conquered a prominent position in infrastructure operation and maintenance over the past few years. In this paper, we will describe the way asset management has been applied in the organization of ProRail, the Dutch railway infrastructure manager. The paper shows that asset management has strongly improved the efficiency, both in terms of financial management and capacity, of the railway infrastructure. However, it also imposes considerable challenges on the asset managers and their organization. The ability to properly deal with these challenges determines whether ProRail as asset manager will be able to seize the opportunities asset management offers.