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Interoperability

The new railway interoperability Directive 2008/57/EC of 17 June 2008 sets out to establish the conditions to be met to achieve interoperability within the Commmunity rail system. These conditions concern the design, construction, placing in service, upgrading, renewal, operation and maintenance of the parts of this system as well as the professional qualifications and health and safety conditions of the staff who contribute to its operation and maintenance. The new Directive will repeal with effect from 19 July 2010 Directive 96/48/EC on the interoperability of the European high-speed rail system as well as Directive 2001/16/EC on the interoperability of the European conventional rail system.

Background

Interoperability of the trans-European conventional rail system

Directive 2001/16/EC on the interoperability of the conventional rail system adopted on 19 March 2001, like that on the high-speed system, introduced Community procedures for the preparation and adoption of TSIs and common rules for assessing conformity to these specifications.

The directive required a first group of priority TSIs to be adopted within three years in the following areas: control/command and signalling; telematics applications for freight services; traffic operation and management (including staff qualifications for cross-border services); freight wagons; and noise problems deriving from rolling stock and infrastructure.

Interoperability of the trans-European high-speed rail system

Under the EC Treaty (Articles 154 and 155), the Community has the task of contributing to the establishment and development of trans-European networks in the area of transport. In order to achieve these objectives, the Community must take the necessary measures to ensure the interoperability of the networks, particularly in the field of technical standardisation.

An initial measure was taken in the rail sector by the Council on 23 July 1996 when it adopted Directive 96/48/EC on the interoperability of the trans-European high-speed rail system.

In order to achieve the objectives of that directive, technical specifications for interoperability (TSIs) were drawn up by the European Association for Railway Interoperability (AEIF), which acted as the joint representative body defined in the directive, bringing together representatives of the infrastructure managers, railway companies and industry.

A number of tools and methodologies had to be developed in order to prepare the TSIs. Pending the adoption of TSIs, and in order to guide the technical choices made in the projects in progress in several Member States, the Commission adopted two instruments: Decision 2001/260/EC on the characteristics of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) and Recommendation 2001/290/EC on the basic parameters of the trans-European high-speed rail system.

A programme to develop the corresponding European standards was launched in 1998 and is regularly updated to reflect the work on TSIs.

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Last update: 16/05/2011 | Top