The Transport Policy Congress – which in a sense gives #rail2009 its brand identity – proved to be particularly popular, attracting key industry players, executive board members and prominent politicians to Dortmund. The presence of heavy hitters such as Dr. Rüdiger Grube, Executive Board Chairman of Deutsche Bahn AG, and Wladimir Jakunin, President of Rus-sian Railways, underlined the recognition that the congress convention enjoys within the European rail and transport sector. Under the auspices of #rail2009, transport ministers and railway executives from a total of eight European countries came together for an informal “Railway Summit”. In addition, numerous industry associations were once again able to use the congress convention as a dialogue platform for their own events. “The exceptional rate of attendance and the high calibre of the participants demonstrate that #rail2009 has got the industry’s attention”, emphasised Lutz Lienenkämper, North Rhine-Westphalian’s Minister of Transport. The Ministry was only one of the technical carrieres that helped structure the event’s wide-ranging programme: other contributors included various transport associations and transport companies, both European and national, as well as German regional associations.