A multi-billion euro showcase project aimed at getting Europe’s trains to run seamlessly from one country to another is unnecessarily complex and has been poorly managed, prompting a series of costly delays, according to leading figures in the sector.

The European Rail Traffic Management System has been hampered by the need to accommodate widely differing operating practices from across the Continent into a single system, according to industry figures who now question whether it was wise for Brussels to press ahead with the venture without first integrating rules.