A4-0070/95

Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive relating to cableway installations designed to carry passengers (COM(93)0646 - C3-0039/94 - 94/0011(COD))

The proposal was approved with the following amendments:

(Amendment 1)

Title

>Original text>

Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive relating to cableway installations designed to carry passengers

>Text following EP vote>

Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive relating to cableway installations designed to carry persons

(Amendment 2)

Recital 1

>Original text>

Whereas cableway installations designed to carry passengers are designed, manufactured, put into service and operated with the object of providing a service to the public; whereas, to a very large extent, these cableway installations are mountain lift systems used in high-altitude tourist resorts and consisting of funicular railways, cable cars, gondolas, chair lifts and drag lifts;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas cableway installations designed to carry passengers are designed, manufactured, put into service and operated with the object of providing a service to the public; whereas these cableway installations are principally mountain lift systems used in high-altitude tourist resorts and consisting of funicular railways, cable cars, gondolas, chair lifts and drag lifts, but also mechanical raising and lowering systems used in certain urban transport facilities; whereas some types of installation may use other, completely different simple mechanical principles which cannot be excluded a priori; whereas, therefore, provision should be made for introducing specific mechanical requirements designed to achieve the same safety objectives as those laid down in this Directive;

(Amendment 3)

Recital 2

>Original text>

Whereas these installations are operated in connection with tourism, and ski resort tourism in particular, which plays an important role in the economy of the regions concerned and is becoming an increasingly important factor in national trade balances; whereas, from a technical point of view, the cableway installations sector also ranks among the industrial activities linked to the production of capital equipment and to activities in the building and civil engineering sector;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas these installations are principally operated in connection with tourism, and ski resort tourism in particular, which plays an important role in the economy of the regions concerned and is becoming an increasingly important factor in national trade balances; whereas, from a technical point of view, the cableway installations sector also ranks among the industrial activities linked to the production of capital equipment and to activities in the building and civil engineering sector;

(Amendment 4)

Recital 3a (new)

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas, furthermore, certain installations may straddle frontiers and their construction may run up against these parallel, contradictory regulations;

(Amendment 5)

Recital 5

>Original text>

Whereas responsibility for approving equipment and installations is generally vested in a specialized service of the national administration; whereas, in certain cases, approval of the components cannot be obtained beforehand but only at the moment when a specific order is placed with a particular customer; whereas, by the same token, the requisite verification of the installation prior to its entry into public service may result in the rejection of certain components or certain technological solutions; whereas such a state of affairs leads to increased costs and longer waiting periods and is particularly discriminatory against non-national manufacturers, especially; whereas cableway installations are carefully monitored by the public services, not least during periods when they are operational; whereas the causes of serious accidents are linked to the system of transport as such, or to the fixed installations supporting the system, or to the way in which the system is operated and maintained;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas responsibility for approving equipment and installations is generally vested in a specialized service of the national administration; whereas, in certain cases, approval of the components cannot be obtained beforehand but only at the moment when a specific order is placed with a particular customer; whereas, by the same token, the requisite verification of the installation prior to its entry into public service may result in the rejection of certain components or certain technological solutions; whereas such a state of affairs leads to increased costs and longer waiting periods and is particularly discriminatory against non-national manufacturers, especially; whereas cableway installations are carefully monitored by the public services, not least during periods when they are operational; whereas the causes of serious accidents are linked to the choice of site, to the system of transport as such, or to the fixed installations supporting the system, or to the way in which the system is operated and maintained;

(Amendment 6)

Recital 6

>Original text>

Whereas, under these conditions, the safety of the installations depends both on the quality of the industrial goods supplied and on the way in which they are assembled, set up and monitored on site; whereas this underlines the importance of having an overview of the installation in order to assess the level of safety and of adopting a common approach, at Community level, in the field of safeguards and quality; whereas, under these conditions, steps should be taken to enable manufacturers to overcome their current difficulties and to enable users to derive maximum benefit from their leisure time and to enjoy equal improvements irrespective of the Member States they choose to visit; whereas, to this end, a set of requirements should be defined together with control and verification procedures to be applied uniformly throughout the Community;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas, under these conditions, the safety of the installations depends on the environmental studies, on the quality of the industrial goods supplied and on the way in which they are assembled, set up and monitored on site; whereas this underlines the importance of having an overview of the installation in order to assess the level of safety and of adopting a common approach, at Community level, in the field of safeguards and quality; whereas, under these conditions, steps should be taken to enable manufacturers to overcome their current difficulties and to enable users to derive maximum benefit from their leisure time and to enjoy equal improvements irrespective of the Member States they choose to visit; whereas, to this end, a set of requirements should be defined together with control and verification procedures to be applied uniformly throughout the Community;

(Amendment 7)

Recital 8

>Original text>

Whereas Directive 85/337/EEC calls for an environmental impact assessment on cableway installations if the projects are likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue, inter alia, of their nature, size or location;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas Directive 85/337/EEC calls for an environmental impact assessment on cableway installations if the projects are likely to have significant effects on the environment by virtue, inter alia, of their nature, size or location; whereas it is also important, outside the cases covered by the abovementioned Directive, to take into account both environmental protection and requirements in connection with the sustainable development of winter and summer tourism;

(Amendment 8)

Recital 19a (new)

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas the constraints linked to the operation of the installations must be taken into account in the safety analysis; whereas, however, operational management itself should not jeopardize the principle of the free movement of goods or the safety of the installations; whereas, therefore, this Directive does not cover the operation of the installations; whereas, nevertheless, the Commission should propose to the Member States a series of recommendations designed to ensure that installations situated on their territory are operated in such a way as to offer users and third parties a high degree of protection;

(Amendment 9)

Recital 20a (new)

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas installations under construction on the date this Directive enters into force must comply with its provisions where this is feasible given the stage reached in the work; whereas installations for which authorization has been given but in connection with which building work has not started on the date of entry into force must comply with those same provisions;

(Amendment 10)

Recital 21

>Original text>

Whereas it is not necessary to envisage bringing all existing installations into conformity with the provisions applicable to new installations; whereas, however, this may prove necessary if there is clear evidence that conditions are unsafe;

>Text following EP vote>

Whereas it is not necessary to envisage bringing all existing installations into conformity with all the provisions applicable to new installations; whereas, however, this may prove necessary if the basic safety objectives are ignored; whereas, in that event, the Commission should propose to the Member States a series of recommendations designed to ensure that existing installations on their territory offer users a high degree of protection in the light of the relevant provisions applicable to new installations;

(Amendment 11)

Article 1(5), third indent

>Original text>

- 'safety component' means any installation component the failure of which poses a risk to the safety of persons, be they passengers, workers or third parties.

>Text following EP vote>

- 'safety component' means any basic component, group of components, sub-unit or complete unit incorporated in the installation the failure of which poses a risk to the safety of persons, be they passengers, workers or third parties, including skiers.

(Amendment 12)

Article 1(5), third indent a (new)

>Text following EP vote>

- 'owner' means the person or body responsible for all aspects of construction of an installation, for ensuring that the various parties involved comply with the obligations laid down in this Directive, and for obtaining the administrative authorization required for the installation to be built and put into service.

(Amendment 13)

Article 3(6), second paragraph a (new)

>Text following EP vote>

The same procedure shall be used where a Member State or the Commission considers that the basic requirements referred to in Annex II (4.1.), are not technically the most appropriate, without prejudice to the safety objectives.

(Amendment 14)

Article 6a (new)

>Text following EP vote>

In the case of installations situated on the territories of several Member States, one single Member State shall be responsible for the application of this Directive. That Member State shall be designated using the procedure set out in Article 18.

(Amendment 15)

Article 9

>Original text>

Each Member State shall be responsible for authorizing the putting into service of the cableway installations designed to carry passengers and located in its territory.

>Text following EP vote>

Each Member State shall be responsible for authorizing the construction and putting into service in its territory of cableway installations designed to carry passengers.

>Original text>

To this end, Member States shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the installations covered by this Directive may be put into service only if they have been designed, constructed and installed in such a way as not to hamper compliance with the essential requirements pertaining thereto.

>Text following EP vote>

To this end, Member States shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the installations covered by this Directive may be

(a) constructed only if they have been designed and

(b) put into service only if they have been constructed and installed

in such a way as not to hamper compliance with the essential requirements pertaining thereto.

(Amendment 16)

Article 12

>Original text>

1. By way of derogation from the provisions of Article 11(1), the putting into service of an installation of a wholly or partially new design may be authorized by a Member State in its territory on the basis of a provisional EC verification certifying that the installation complies with the essential requirements.

2. Under the coordination arrangements referred to in Article 17, the notified body which has examined the EC verification procedure shall notify its partners of the outcome of its work and shall inform them, if so requested, of how the installation, with its new features, performs under operating conditions.

>Text following EP vote>

Where a projected installation or a component thereof is designed or carried out using an innovative approach, without infringing compliance with the essential requirements, a Member State may make authorization for construction and putting into service subject to special conditions.

A design feature may not be treated as innovative beyond a period of five years from the date on which it was first put into service in an installation.

>Original text>

3. The Member State may authorize the same derogation for other installations exhibiting the same new feature for a period of no more than two years from the date on which the first installation comes into operation.

>Original text>

At the end of this period, the coordination procedure referred to in Article 17 shall be initiated by the notified body which examined the provisional EC verification procedure, with a view to making it definitive and enabling the EC declaration of conformity to be drawn up.

(Amendment 17)

Article 14

>Original text>

The provisions of this Directive shall apply in cases where an existing installation is undergoing major repairs or alterations.

>Text following EP vote>

The provisions of this Directive shall apply in cases where an existing installation is undergoing major repairs or alterations, in the case of an installation for which authorization has been given prior to the entry into force of this Directive but in connection with which building work has not yet begun, and, as far as possible, and in accordance with the stage reached in the building work, to installations under construction on the date referred to in Article 20.

(Amendment 18)

Article 20(1)

>Original text>

1. The Member States shall amend their laws, regulations and administrative provisions so as to authorize the use of safety components and the putting into service of installations complying with this Directive by 31 December 1995 at the latest. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.

>Text following EP vote>

1. The Member States shall amend their laws, regulations and administrative provisions so as to authorize the use of safety components and the construction and putting into service of installations complying with this Directive by 31 December 1995 at the latest. They shall forthwith inform the Commission thereof.

(Amendment 19)

Annex II (2.1)

>Original text>

The safety of passengers, workers and third parties is an essential requirement for the design, construction and operation of cableway transport installations.

>Text following EP vote>

The safety of passengers, workers and third parties, including skiers, is an essential requirement for the design, construction and operation of cableway transport installations.

(Amendment 20)

Annex II (2.3)

>Original text>

All cable transport installations must be designed, constructed and operated in such a way as to take into account, in addition to the category and type of installation, the nature and physical features of the terrain on which it is installed, the natural environmental risks and the proximity of other infrastructures. No authorization may be granted for installations likely to have a significant impact on areas with a sensitive environment, such as special protection areas designated in accordance with Community legislation, until after an assessment has been made, as provided for by Directive 85/337/EEC.

>Text following EP vote>

All cable transport installations must be designed, constructed and operated in such a way as to take into account, with the protection of persons in mind, in addition to the category and type of installation, the nature and physical features of the terrain on which it is installed, the natural environmental risks, major or otherwise, and the proximity of other infrastructures. Due account must also be taken, with regard to environmental protection and the sustainable development of winter and summer tourism, of the nature and physical features at all seasons of the countryside on which it is installed and the proximity of other infrastructures. In addition, no authorization may be granted for installations likely to have a significant impact on areas with a sensitive environment, such as special protection areas designated in accordance with Community legislation, until after an assessment has been made, as provided for by Directive 85/337/EEC.

(Amendment 21)

Annex II (7.1.2)

>Original text>

7. 1.2. Operation of the installation must be entrusted to persons acknowledged to have the requisite skills and they must be given the material resources they require to carry out their tasks satisfactorily.

>Text following EP vote>

7. 1.2. Operation of the installation must be entrusted to persons acknowledged by each Member State to have the requisite skills and they must be given the material resources they require to carry out their tasks satisfactorily.

Legislative resolution embodying Parliament's opinion on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council Directive relating to cableway installations designed to carry passengers (COM(93)0646 - C3-0039/94 - 94/0011(COD))

(Codecison procedure: first reading)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council, COM(93)0646 - 94/0011(COD) (( OJ C 70, 8.3.1994, p. 8.)),

- having regard to Articles 189b(2), 57(2), 66 and 100a of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C3- 0039/94),

- having regard to Rule 58 of its Rules of Procedure,

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and Industrial Policy and the opinions of the Committee on Budgets and the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A4-0070/95),

1. Approves the Commission proposal, subject to Parliament's amendments;

2. Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, pursuant to Article 189a(2) of the EC Treaty;

3. Calls on the Council to incorporate Parliament's amendments in the common position that it adopts in accordance with Article 189b(2) of the EC Treaty;

4. Should the Council intend to depart from the text approved by Parliament, calls on the Council to notify Parliament and requests that the conciliation procedure be initiated;

5. Points out that the Commission is required to submit to Parliament any modification it may intend to make to its proposal as amended by Parliament;

6. Instructs its President to forward this opinion to the Council and Commission.