The opening of high speed lines has enabled rail transport to obtain significant market share on routes where time sensitive passengers would previously have travelled by air, such as Paris-Lyon and Madrid-Seville. However, the expansion of low cost airlines means that on some routes, particularly in Germany and the UK, prices for air transport are now similar to or below prices for rail transport. This could have the potential to reverse the switch in market share. In addition, the construction and maintenance of high speed rail lines requires significant public funding, at a time when there are a number of competing claims on resources. At two European airports, Frankfurt and Paris CDG, there are high speed rail stations at the airport and there is the potential for rail and air services to complement each other rather than compete. Instead of taking a short distance flight to the airport, in order to connect on to a longer distance flight, passengers can travel by high speed rail to/from the airport, and on certain routes can purchase tickets which include both a rail sector and the air sector. However, the attractiveness of this to air passengers is limited if they cannot check-in their luggage at the station and obtain a single electronic ticket for the combined journey. The Commission wishes to investigate if this poses any security risks. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate: - the factors determining air and rail market share; - the operating costs of each mode; - the likely trend in market share and operating costs in the next 5-10 years; and - whether the introduction of through baggage handling and e-ticketing poses any security risks.