The Foundation for the Defence of Citizens against State Abuses has won an important victory in court against CFR Călători. The state-owned company is now required to disclose public interest information regarding the procurement of the new ticketing and seat reservation system, as well as the costs generated by the blocking of its implementation.
According to data analysed by FACIAS, CFR Călători has initiated a project to replace the current centralized IT system used for issuing travel tickets and reserving seats with a more efficient digital one. Following a public tender, the contract for renting hardware and software equipment was awarded to ASEE Solutions SRL.
The issues arose immediately after the delivery of the equipment, when CFR Călători found that it did not have the necessary technical services to render the new system operational and that, in the absence of a separate service contract, the new technology could not be installed and put into service. More precisely, there was no contract in force with Informatica Feroviară S.A. for the installation, integration and operation of the new system.
Thus, the equipment related to the new system remained unused, although CFR Călători continued to pay monthly rent for it. The situation was further complicated by the fact that the maintenance for the current national ticketing and seat reservation system, known as xSell, was about to expire. In order to avoid a total blockage of train ticket sales and reservations, CFR Călători was forced to initiate a direct procurement procedure for the support and maintenance services for the current xSell system, for a period of one more year.
Thus, CFR Călători found itself in the absurd situation of simultaneously paying the costs for a new system that could not be used and the costs necessary to maintain the old system in operation.
After being notified, FACIAS requested CFR Călători to communicate the status of the implementation of the purchases for the new train ticket sales system, the amount of the monthly rent paid for the equipment rented from ASEE Solutions SRL, the total amount paid since the signing of the contract, the date of delivery of the equipment and whether they are currently in use. At the same time, FACIAS also requested information on the last support and maintenance contract for the existing IT system, including its period and value.
Following CFR Călători's abusive refusal to communicate this information, FACIAS filed a lawsuit. In May 2026, the Bucharest Court admitted FACIAS's lawsuit and obliged CFR Călători to transmit all the requested information.
FACIAS calls on CFR Călători to immediately comply with the decision and make all the requested information public. Citizens have the right to know how public money is managed and why a modernization project remained blocked after the delivery of the equipment, generating unjustified parallel costs.
This is another case of waste of public money identified by FACIAS as part of the "Turn off the Waste Faucet!" Campaign. Through this initiative, FACIAS aims to draw attention to the poor way in which public funds are managed and to determine the authorities to adopt measures for an efficient, responsible and transparent administration of public money.