Sabre to develop global rail booking product
Sabre Travel Network is to develop a rail booking product which it claims will allow rail companies around Europe to easily connect to all points of sale.
“Rail operators around the world have individual technology platforms, connectivity requirements and booking protocols that each require a dedicated separate connection and specific agency training,” said senior vice president of Sabre Travel Network Martin Cowley.
“This ultimately makes it difficult for travel agencies to promote and sell rail alongside air and car which all have one universal booking platform.
“Sabre Rail Platform will resolve all these issues by providing what is essentially a single global marketplace for all rail suppliers, travel agencies, and travellers to come together to buy and sell rail products using a single universal currency or language. It’s like a universal plug adaptor for rail operators worldwide.
“Rail suppliers will be able to plug quickly and easily into the Sabre Rail Platform regardless of their technology protocol, and in turn provide a consistent interface to all of Sabre’s points of sale.
“At the same time, travel agencies will be able to search, book and manage all rail bookings in the same way they currently make air, hotel and car bookings through the GDS.”
Sabre is now beta testing the integration of Harry Weeks Travel’s Evolvi rail booking product into the Sabre Rail Platform and says this will be available to all UK travel agencies by the end of the year.
Sabre plans to integrate Deutsche Bahn and SNCF next year, followed by rail operators in Belgium, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and North America.
Grahame Weeks, managing director of Harry Weeks Travel, said integrating Evolvi into the Sabre Rail Platform marked a significant milestone for the Evolvi product, which continues to be developed and enhanced to meet the changing needs of the UK rail marketplace.
“We are really excited about being part of what is a fundamental shift in the way travel agencies currently shop and book rail travel,” said Weeks.
Commodore Travel is the UK beta customer for the integration of the UK rail system into the Sabre Rail Platform.
By Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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