Amended proposal for a COUNCIL REGULATION (EC) amending Regulation (EEC) No 684/92 on common rules for the international carriage of passengers by coach and bus
Date: 1997-02-26
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: approximation of laws, bus, carriage of passengers, road transport, trade licence

COMMISSION  OF THE EUROPEAN  COMMUNITIES 

Brussels,  26.02.1997 
COM(97) 73  final 

96/0125 (SYN) 

Amended proposal  for  a 

COUNCIL REGULATION  (EC) 

amending Regulation (EEC) No 684/92 

on common rules for the international carriage 

of passengers by coach and bus 

(presented  by the Commission  pursuant to Article  189 a (2) 
of  the  EC-Treaty) 

EXPLANATORY  MEMORANDUM 

At its plenary  session of 27 and  28 November  1996, the  European  Parliament  approved, 

subject to a number of amendments, the proposal for a Council Regulation (EC) amending 

Council  Regulation  (EEC) No 684/92  on common  rules  for  the  international  carriage  of 

passengers by coach and bus.! 

The Commission has accepted the amendments concerning: 

-  Recital  la (new) on the general principle of the liberalization and phased  harmonization 

of the conditions of competition, subject to "Union" being replaced by "Community"; 

-  Recital  7  where  mention  is  made  of  simplifying  administrative  procedures  for  the 

issuing of the Community licence; 

-  Recital 9a (new)  and  Article  1(1) on excluding  urban  and  suburban  services  from  the 

scope  of  the  Regulation  on  international  carriage.  The  exclusion  of  international 

regional  services  cannot  be  accepted,  since  this  would  run  counter  to  the  objectives 

achieved  by  the  creation  of  the  internal  market  and  would  be  seen  as  a  regression 

compared with the previous situation established by Regulation 684/92; 

1  OJ No C 203, 13.07.96. 

-  Récita! 9b (nev.) concerning the accessibility of transport  systems, 

-  Article  1(5) and  (7)  concerning,  respectively,  the  definition  of occasional  services and 

own-account transport operations; 

-  Article 3(1) which supplements the definition of the Community licence; 

-  Article 6(5) on using additional vehicles; 

The Commission thus amends its proposal as follows: 

Amended  proposal  for  a 

Council  Regulation  amending  Regulation  (EEC) No 684/92 

on common  rules for  the international  carriage 

of passengers  by coach  and  bus 

The  Gommission  proposal  in document  COM(96)  190 final -  SYN  96/01252  is amended 

as follows: 

Initial Commission  proposal 

Amended  proposal 

Recital  la  (new) 

the  European  Community's 
"Whereas 
internal  market  is  an  area  for  the  free 
movement  of  goods,  persons,  services  and 
capital: whereas  it  is necessary  to  liberalize 
the  international  carriage  of  passengers  bv 
coach  and  bus,  in  tandem  with  the  phased 
harmonization  of the  socio-economic,  fiscal 
and  technical  conditions  governing  road 
passenger  transport  within  the  Member 
States  and  alongside  measures  to  ensure 
non-discriminatory 
for 
operators;" 

conditions 

2  OJ No C 203, 13.07.96. 

Initial  Commission  proposal 

Amended  proposal 

Recital 7 

in  order 

facilitate 
to 
transport  operations, 

the 
"Whereas, 
inspection  of 
the 
international  carriage of passengers by road 
for  hire  or  reward  should  be  subject  to  a 
Community 
to  a 
harmonized model;" 

licence  conforming 

in  order 

facilitate 
to 
transport  operations, 

the 
"Whereas, 
inspection  of 
the 
international  carriage of passengers by  road 
for  hire  or  reward  should  be  subject  to  a 
Community 
to  a 
harmonized  model  and  issued  by  means  of 
administrative 
are 
straightforward  and  do  not  constitute  a 
burden for transport undertakings:" 

licence  conforming 

procedures  which 

Initial Commission  proposal 

Amended proposal 

Recital 9a (new) 

"Whereas  urban  carriage  in  frontier  areas 
should,  for  the  present,  be  excluded  from 
the  scope  of  this  Regulation,  in  view  of  its 
the  general 
character  as  a  service 
interest:" 

in 

Initial Commission  proposal 

Amended proposal 

Recital 9b (new) 

"Whereas 
transport 
the  accessibility  of 
systems and  in particular  the accessibility  of 
intercity  bus  and  coach  services,  especially 
on  routes  across  Europe,  is  one  of  the 
objectives of the common transport policy:" 

Initial  Commission  proposal 

Amended  proposal 

Article  1(1) 

Article 2  of  Regulation 684/92  is  amended 
as follows: 

Article 2  of  Regulation 684/92  is  amended 
as follows: 

A new subparagraph is added to point  1.1: 

A new subparagraph  is added to point  1.1: 

"Regular  services  operated  within  a 
conurbation  situated  in two  or  more 
Member States  shall  be  designated 
"urban carriage in frontier  areas"." 

two 

transport 
or 

"Regular  services  operated  as urban 
services 
and  suburban 
between 
more 
Member States  shall  be  designated 
"urban  carriage  in  frontier  areas". 
These  services  shall  be  excluded 
from  the scope of this Regulation" 

Initial Commission proposal 

Amended  proposal 

Article 1(5) 

Article 2  of  Regulation 684/92  is  amended 
as follows: 

Article 2  of  Regulation 684/92  is  amended 
as follows: 

"Point 3  1  is replaced by the following: 

"Point 3.1 is replaced by the following: 

Occasional  services  are  services  which  do 
not  meet the definition  of a regular service^ 
including special regular services, and which 
are  characterized  above  all  by  the  fact  that 
they  carry  groups  of  passengers  assembled 
at  the  initiative  of  the  customer  or  of  the 
carrier himself 

The  organization  of  parallel  or  temporary 
services  comparable 
to  existing  regular 
services  and  serving  the  same  public  as  the 
latter  shall  be  subject  to  authorization  in 
accordance with the procedure  laid down in 
Section II of this Regulation." 

Occasional  services  are  services  meeting 
neither  the  definition  of  a  regular  service 
nor  the  definition  of  a  special  regular 
service,  and  which  are  characterized  above 
all  by  the  fact  that  they  carry  groups  of 
passengers  previously  assembled,  or  that 
they  are  organized  at  the  request  of  the 
customer,  or  comprise  accommodation  or 
other  non-ancillary  tourist  services  in  the 
course  of  the  journey  or  at  the  place  of 
destination,  or  are  organized  on  the 
occasion  of  special  events,  or  comprise  an 
empty journey  in the course of the outward 
or  return  journey  or  are  organized  for  the 
purpose of carrying out tours. 

The  organization  of  parallel  or  temporary 
services  comparable 
to  existing  regular 
services  and  serving  the  same  public  as the 
latter  shall  be  subject  to  authorization  in 
accordance with the procedure laid down in 
Section II of this Regulation." 

Initia! Commission  proposal 

Amended  proposal 

Article  1(7) 

Article  2  of  Regulation  684/92  is  amended 
as  follows: 

Article  2  of  Regulation  684/92  is  amended 
as  follows: 

"Point  4 is replaced  by the  following: 

"Point  4  is replaced  by the  following: 

Own-account  transport  operations  are  those 
carried  out  for  non-commercial  purposes, 
notably  by  an  undertaking  for 
its  own 
employees  or  by  a  non-profit-making  body 
in 
for 
connection  with 
objective 
provided  that: 

its  members 
social 

transport  of 
its 

the 

- 

- 

the  transport  activity  is  only  an  ancillary 
activity for  the  undertaking  or  body, 

the  vehicles  used  are  the  property  of  that 
undertaking  or  body  or  have  been 
obtained  on  deferred  terms  by  them  or 
have  been  the  subject  of  a  long-term 
leasing  contract  and  are  driven  by  a 
member  of the  staff  of the undertaking  or 
body." 

transport 

are 
Own-account 
services  carried  out  for  non-profit-making 
and  non-commercial  purposes  by  a  natural 
or  legal  person,  provided  that: 

operations 

- 

- 

the  transport  activity  is  only  an  ancillary 
activity  for  the  natural  or  legal  person. 

the  vehicles  used  are  the  property  of  that 
natural  or  legal  person  or  have  been 
obtained  on  deferred  terms  by  them  or 
have  been  the  subject  of  a  long-term 
leasing  contract  and  are  driven  by  a 
member  of  the  staff  of  the  natural  or 
legal  person  or  bv  the  natural  person 
himself." 

Initial  Commission  proposal 

Amended  proposal 

Article  3(1) 

Regulation  684/92 
new  Article  3a: 

is  supplemented  by  a 

Regulation  684/92 
new  Article  3a: 

is  supplemented  by  a 

in  Article  3(1)  must 

"1.  Any  carrier  meeting  the  criteria  laid 
a 
down 
Community  licence  issued  by the  competent 
authorities  of  the  State  of  establishment  in 
accordance  with  the  model  in  the  Annex  to 
this  Regulation." 

hold 

the 

"1.  With  a  view 
international 
to 
carriage  of  passengers  by  coach  or  bus,  any 
carrier  meeting  the  criteria  laid  down  in 
Article  3(1)  must  hold  a  Community  licence 
issued  by  the  competent  authorities  of  the 
State  of  establishment  in  accordance  with 
the  model  in the  Annex  to  this  Regulation." 

Initial  Commission  proposal 

Amended  proposai 

Article 6(5) 

Article  5  of  Regulation  684/92  is  amended 
as follows: 

Article  5 of  Regulation  684/92  is  amended 
as follows. 

"6.  In the  case  of additional  vehicles being 
used  for  existing regular services,  a copy of 
the  corresponding  contract  or  document 
between  the  operator  of the regular  service 
and  the  carrier  providing  the  additional 
vehicles  and  a  copy  of the  authorization  of 
the  regular  service  must  be  carried  on  the 
vehicle. 

"6.  The  operator  of  the  regular  services 
may  use  additional  vehicles  to  cope  with 
temporary  or exceptional  situations.  In this 
case, 
the 
the  carrier  must  ensure  that 
following  documents  are  carried  on  the 
vehicle: 

-  a copy of the authorization  of the regular 

service, 

A carrier  providing additional  vehicles must 
hold  the Community licence provided  for in 
Article 3(a).  A true copy of the Community 
licence  must  be  carried  on  the  additional 
vehicle." 

-  a  copy  of 

the  contract  concluded 
between  the  operator  of  the  regular 
service  and  the  undertaking  providing 
the  additional  vehicles  or  an  equivalent 
document, 

-  a  true  copy  of  the  Community  licence 
issued  to  the  operator  of  the  regular 
service. " 

The remainder of the text is unchanged. 

Done at Brussels, 

For the Council 

ISSN 0254-.-, 75 

COM(97) 73 final 

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