Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament - Progress Report 2000 to 2005 on the implementation of the Interoperability Directives (96/48/EC for high speed rail and 2001/16/EC for conventional rail) {SEC(2006) 1418}
Date: 2006-11-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: application of EU law, high-speed transport, rail network, report, trans-European network

COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 6.11.2006 
COM(2006) 660 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE COUNCIL AND THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT 

Progress report 2000 to 2005 on the implementation of the Interoperability Directives 
(96/48/EC for high speed rail and 2001/16/EC for conventional rail) 

{SEC(2006) 1418} 

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

1. 

2. 

2.1. 

2.2. 

2.3. 

2.4. 

2.5. 

2.6. 

2.7. 

3. 

3.1. 

3.2. 

4. 

4.1. 

4.2. 

4.3. 

4.4. 

4.5. 

4.6. 

4.7. 

5. 

Introduction .................................................................................................................. 3 

Activities under the Directives..................................................................................... 3 

The Committee............................................................................................................. 3 

The Joint Representative Body and the European Railway Agency............................ 4 

Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSIs).................................................... 4 

Cost Benefit Analysis................................................................................................... 4 

Stakeholder Dialogue ................................................................................................... 4 

Amendment Directive 2004/50 .................................................................................... 5 

The Safety Directive 2004/49/EC and the European Railway Agency ....................... 5 

Transposition of the Directives .................................................................................... 5 

High Speed Rail Directive 96/48/EC ........................................................................... 5 

Conventional Rail Directive 2001/16/EC .................................................................... 5 

Progress of Interoperability.......................................................................................... 6 

The Trans European Networks..................................................................................... 6 

Interoperability of the Trans-European Rail Network ................................................. 6 

Registers of Infrastructure and Rolling Stock.............................................................. 7 

Non Application of the TSIs ........................................................................................ 7 

ERTMS ........................................................................................................................ 7 

Notified Bodies and their Activities............................................................................. 7 

Standardisation............................................................................................................. 8 

Conclusions and Recommendations ............................................................................ 8 

Annexes : Commission Staff Working Paper containing six annexes related to the contents of 
the report. 

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1. 

INTRODUCTION 

The basis for this report is provided by Article 24 of Directive 96/48/EC which states : 

“Every two years the Commission shall report to the European Parliament and the Council on 
the  progress  made  towards  achieving  interoperability  of  the  trans-European  high-speed  rail 
system” 

Similarly, Article 28 of Directive 2001/16/EC requires: 

“Every  two  years,  and  for  the  first  time  20  April  2005  the  Commission  shall  report  to  the 
European Parliament and the Council on the progress made towards achieving interoperability 
of the trans-European conventional rail system.” 

This report intends to fulfil these obligations in a single report. It describes the current status 
of  the  interoperability  Directives,  their  transposition  by  Member  States,  the  activities 
undertaken  to  fulfil  the  provisions  of  the  directives,  the  progress  of  interoperability  and  the 
future  relationship  with  the  European  Railway  Agency,  which  started  its  activities  in  the 
course  of  2005.  The  delay  in  presenting  this  report  reflects  the  time  necessary  to  enable  all 
these elements to be collated and examined in a complete and coherent manner. 

2. 

ACTIVITIES UNDER THE DIRECTIVES 

The high speed rail directive 96/48/EC entered into force in 1996 and its implementation into 
national legislation was required by April 1999.  

The conventional rail Directive 2001/16/EC entered into force in 2001 and its implementation 
into national legislation was required by April 2003.  

Annex 3 and 4 detail state of transposition for these directives in each Member State. 

The  scope  of  the  trans-European  rail  network  is  described  in  Decision  1692/96/EC  of  the 
European Parliament and Council on Community Guidelines for the development of the trans-
European transport network, amended in 2004 by Decision 884/2004/EC. 

2.1. 

The Committee 

A Committee of Member State representatives was established under Article 21 of Directive 
96/48/EC. The Committee rules of procedure, adopted in October 1997, were further modified 
and  adopted  in  April  2002  in  order  to  expand  the  scope  of  Committee  activities  to  include 
tasks arising under Directive 2001/16/EC.  

This same Committee also acts under Article 27 of Directive 2004/49/EC on the safety of the 
Community’s  railways.  The  extension  of  the  competence  of  this  Committee  to  cover  rail 
safety ensures better integration of safety and interoperability requirements. In the long term 
this  could  lead  to  a  single  set  of  rules  for  interoperability  and  safety,  to  the  benefit  of  the 
whole railway system. 

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2.2. 

The Joint Representative Body and the European Railway Agency 

At  the  end  of  1996  the  European  Association  for  Railway  Interoperability  (AEIF)  were 
appointed  to  act  as  the  joint  representative  body  established  under  Directive  96/48/EC.  The 
European Railway Agency takes over the role of the AEIF, and will draft all future TSIs from 
2006  onwards.  In  February  2006  the  Agency  was  awarded  its  first  mandate  to  carry  the 
drafting of the third set of TSIs under the conventional rail directive.  

2.3. 

Technical Specifications for Interoperability (TSIs) 

Under the high speed rail Directive 96/48/EC five TSIs were drawn up and these came into 
force  in  May  2002  as  described  in  Annex  2  to  this  report.  These  TSIs  are  currently  being 
revised; final drafts of the revised texts are expected to be put to the Committee for voting in 
mid 2006 and formally adopted by the Commission by the end of 2006. 

The first group of priority TSIs under the conventional rail directive 2001/16/EC, adopted by 
the Commission in 2005/2006, are described in Annex 2 of this report. The second priority, 
prepared  by  the  AEIF,  are  the  proposed  TSIs  for  Safety  in  Railway  Tunnels  and  the 
Accessibility of Persons with Reduced Mobility. First drafts have been prepared and are now 
under review.  

In the development of the first and second priority TSIs a number of common requirements 
between  conventional  rail  and  high  speed  rail  emerged  that  are  independent  of  the  speed  of 
the  line  such  as  in  the  areas  of  noise,  traffic  operations  and  management,  safety  in  railway 
tunnels and persons with reduced mobility. In the future there may be benefit in considering 
the  merger  of  certain  TSIs,  where  they  are  independent  of  rail  speed,  allowing  legislative 
documentation  to  be  reduced  and  for  rail  systems  to  be  considered  from  a  ‘total  system’ 
perspective with the potential to reduce overall cost and improve benefits. 

2.4. 

Cost Benefit Analysis 

In  accordance  with  Article  6(4)  of  Directives  2001/16/EC  and  96/48/EC,  each  TSI  shall  be 
supported by a cost benefit analysis. Member States are obliged to participate in this activity 
through providing the requisite data. This participation is essential as detailed information on 
the  structure  and  functioning  of  the  rail  system  is  only  available  at  a  national  level  and  is 
needed in order to ensure the complete impact of the TSI is rigorously determined. 

2.5. 

Stakeholder Dialogue 

According to Article 6(8) of both interoperability directives, social partners shall be consulted 
during the development of the TSIs. This has been carried out for all conventional rail TSIs, 
and  high  speed  rail  TSI  revisions.  This  has  been  done  within  the  context  of  the  Social 
Dialogue  Committee,  set  up  in  accordance  with  Commission  Decision  98/500/EC.  Despite 
initial difficulties in organising the dialogue between AEIF and the social partners, experience 
has shown a positive evolution of the process and useful contributions, adding to the quality 
of the TSIs. 

Similarly the drafting of TSIs has taken the views of users into consideration via consultations 
arranged by AEIF, as provided for under Article 6(7) of both directives. 

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2.6. 

Amendment Directive 2004/50 

In  their  Resolution  of  May  2000  the  European  Parliament  and  Council  called  on  the 
Commission  to  submit  proposals  for  the  amendment  of  96/48/EC  in  order  to  align  it  with 
Directive 2001/16/EC. 

Consequentially  Directive  2004/50/EC,  which  amends  both  directive  96/48/EC  and 
2001/16/EC, was adopted in April 2004 as part of the second railway package. Member States 
must transpose this directive into national legislation by 1 May 2006. Its key provisions are 
described in Annex 2.  

These  provisions  have  been  successfully  implemented  for  the  adopted  TSIs  and  for  those 
under development and revision.  

2.7. 

The Safety Directive 2004/49/EC and the European Railway Agency 

The  Safety  Directive  makes  provisions  for  a  harmonised  European  approach  to  safety  and 
establishes  national  safety  authorities  responsible  for  the  regulation  of  safety  and  national 
accident investigation bodies.  

The Agency is established through Regulations 881/2004/EC, and will be responsible for the 
future  development  of  the  TSIs,  the  monitoring  of  interoperability,  as  well  as  developing 
specific safety measures identified in Directive 2004/49/EC. The activities of the Agency in 
these areas will progressively establish stronger links between safety and the TSIs. 

3. 

TRANSPOSITION OF THE DIRECTIVES 

3.1. 

High Speed Rail Directive 96/48/EC 

With  the  exception  of  Slovakia,  all  Member  States  which  have  a  rail  system  implemented 
Directive  96/48/EC  and  notified  their  transpositions.  Infringement  procedures  have  been 
opened  by  the  Commission  against  Slovakia.  Whilst  Cypress  and  Malta  have  no  railway 
system,  they  are  still  obliged  to  transpose  the  interoperability  directives,  according  to  the 
jurisprudence  of  the  European  Court  of  Justice1.  However  the  Commission  is  currently 
undertaking a review of the situation and may if appropriate consider launching infringement 
proceedings.  

3.2. 

Conventional Rail Directive 2001/16/EC 

The entering into force of the Conventional Rail Directive 2001/16/EC expands the scope of 
the interoperable rail network to that defined in Commission Decision 1692/96/EC.  

All of the EU Member States which have a rail system have implemented Directive 2001/16.  

Annex 3 and 4 list the national implementation measures for the two Directives. 

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Case C-372/00, Commission v Ireland, [2001] ECR p.I-10303 

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4. 

PROGRESS OF INTEROPERABILITY 

4.1. 

The Trans European Networks 

A  key  objective  of  the  TEN-T  network  is  interoperability  and  the  characteristics  of  the 
priority rail projects must comply with the provisions of the high speed and conventional rail 
directives. When seeking Community funding for these projects, Member States are required 
to confirm their compliance with the interoperability  directives, or clarify that  a  derogation, 
under  the  specific  conditions  defined  under  Article  7  of  both  directive  96/48/EC  and 
2001/16/EC, has been granted. 

4.2. 

Interoperability of the Trans-European Rail Network  

Member States comply with the basic parameters of the high speed TSIs, with the exception 
of control-command systems. Hence the movement of interoperable trains, although possible 
with  respect  to  the  characteristics  of  the  infrastructure,  is  hampered  by  the  need  to  equip 
rolling stock with national control-command systems.  

However, other barriers exist that prevent the full interoperability of high speed trains, such as 
track  gauge,  traction  power  supply  voltages  and  maximum  axle  loads.  In  these  cases  a 
‘Specific  Case’  is  granted  in  the  TSI.  Modification  of  these  systems  to  enable  compliance 
with  the  TSIs  is  a  national  decision,  and  should  take  into  consideration  the  benefits  to 
interoperable traffic and the cost of maintaining national systems. 

With  regards  to  track  (rail)  gauge,  with  the  exception  of  Ireland,  Finland,  Portugal  Spain, 
Estonia,  Latvia  and  Lithuania,  all  Member  States  use  a  standard  track  gauge  of  1435mm. 
Solutions have been found for trains that transit between different gauges, but these solutions 
are expensive and in some cases have a substantial impact on border crossing times.  

Category  I  high  speed  lines  (those  suitable  for  a  minimum  speed  of  250km  per  hour) 
expanded across these Member States, specifically: 

Length of high speed lines on 01.01.1996 

Increase in the length of high speed lines 1996 to 2002 

Total length of high speed lines in 2002 

2409km 

1281km 

3690km 

Further it was found that the length of high speed lines under construction or planned in 2002 
was 8417km, however this figure also includes Category II2 and Category III3 lines 

Since  2002  the  situation  has  evolved,  due  to  the  revised  scope  of  the  trans-European 
networks, the reclassification of the high speed lines by Member States and the coming into 
force  of  the  high  speed  TSIs,  and  there  is  a  need  for  a  further  detailed  examination  of  the 
situation. 

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specially upgraded high speed lines equipped for speeds of the order of 200 km/h 
specially upgraded high speed lines which have special features as a result of topographical, relief or 
town planning constraints, on which the speed must be adapted to each case 

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As the conventional rail TSIs are not fully in force yet, it is somewhat early to determine the 
impact of these on the conventional rail network and a detailed study should be carried out at 
a later stage. It should be noted that it is the task of the Agency to report on the progress of 
interoperability every two years. 

4.3. 

Registers of Infrastructure and Rolling Stock 

The interoperability directives require Member States to publish and update annually national 
infrastructure  and  rolling  stock  registers.  These  national  registers  will  provide  an  accurate 
indication  of  the  progress  of  interoperability  within  each  Member  State,  and  will  be  made 
available to the Agency.  

In January 2003, a model structure for these registers was put in place, and the first priority 
group of conventional rail TSIs and the revised high speed TSIs will contain a specification of 
the  data  to  be  held  within  them.  The  links  and  interoperation  of  all  registers  has  been 
identified as an issue to be further examined by the Agency.  

4.4. 

Non Application of the TSIs 

The  interoperability  directives  allow  for  the  non-application  of  the  TSIs,  under  Article  7  of 
directives 96/48/EC and 2001/16/EC, as amended by 2004/50/EC. Member States must notify 
the  Commission  and  Committee  of  any  intended  derogations  and,  in  particular  cases  the 
Commission  will  take  a  decision  on  the  derogation.  In  2005  the  Committee  established 
guidelines on the interpretation of Article 7 and the processes to be applied to derogations. 

A number of derogations have been granted and listed in Annex 6. The Commission, assisted 
by  the  Committee,  will  regularly  review  derogations,  and  the  Agency  shall  monitor  the 
progress of interoperability on the network. 

4.5. 

ERTMS 

Since  March  2003,  all  new  high  speed  lines  must  be  equipped  with  ERTMS  and  with  the 
entry  into  force  of  the  TSI  for  conventional  rail  in  September  2006,  all  new  sections  for 
conventional priority projects shall also be equipped with ERTMS.  

In  March  2005  the  Commission  agreed  a  Memorandum  of  Understanding  with  the  main 
stakeholders  within  the  railway  industry  to  commit  to  supporting  Member  States  in  rapidly 
deploying ERTMS.  However deployment of the system would be slow if it was carried out 
only  as  and  when  required  by  legislation,  although  overall  costs  may  be  lower.  As  a 
consequence  a  real  joined-up  network  would  take  many  years  to  achieve  and  the  first 
companies and networks to equip themselves would have to bear the costs of dual equipment 
(ERTMS and the national equipment) for longer. 

To compensate for this and to give an incentive to the first implementer, the Commission has 
proposed to fund up to 50% of the cost of the deployment of this interoperable system. This 
strong incentive –focussed on a short time period- is necessary to quick start the deployment.  

4.6. 

Notified Bodies and their Activities 

Notified  Bodies  are  responsible  for  assessing  subsystems  for  conformity  against  the  TSIs. 
Member States are responsible for the appointment of these bodies in accordance with Article 
20(2) of both directives 96/48/EC and 2001/16/EC.  

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A  coordination  group  of  Notified  Bodies  –  NB  Rail  –  has  been  established  with  the  first 
meeting  taking  place  in  December  2000  under  the  leadership  of  DG  Enterprise.  They  meet 
regularly to agree common methods of working and coordination. 

The  total  number  of  Notified  Bodies  under  Directive  96/48/EC  is  at  27.  For  Directive 
2001/16/EC, 15 Notified Bodies exist.  

For  high  speed,  although  all  the  Notified  Bodies  notified  to  the  Commission  fulfil  the 
minimum  criteria  as  set  out  in  the  Annex  to  Directive  96/48/EC,  the  additional  criteria  and 
procedures to become a Notified Body vary considerably at national level. This issue shall be 
considered  further  in  the  context  of  the  Committee,  particularly  as  the  activities  and 
participants in NB Rail will increase once the conventional rail TSIs are published. 

Directive  2004/50/EC  strengthened  the  criteria  to  be  fulfilled  by  Notified  Bodies,  requiring 
them to be independent of the Member State authorities granting the authorisation for placing 
into service. 

4.7. 

Standardisation 

To  date  a  total  of  47  harmonised  standards  have  been  published  in  relation  to  Directive 
96/48/EC, for the period 1997 to 2005. Although no harmonised standards are yet published 
in  relation  to  Directive  2001/16/EC,  several  standards  are  currently  in  development  and  are 
expected to become available in 2007.  

5. 

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

The high speed interoperability directive is now well established and fully implemented (with 
the exception of Slovakia) and extensive experience has been gained in the implementation of 
the  TSIs,  their  conformity  assessment  and  the  progression  of  the  high  speed  rail  network. 
With regards to Slovakia, the Commission has now referred the case to the Court of Justice. 

The  conventional  rail  interoperability  directive  expands  the  scope  of  the  interoperable  rail 
network; the directive is now implemented within the Community and the first group of TSIs 
are expected to come into force by mid 2006.  

The  cost  benefit  analysis  supporting  the  TSIs  is  a  crucial  activity  which  enables  the  full 
impact of the TSI to be known. Member States should be encouraged to participate early in 
the development process of the TSI with the Agency. 

In the future there is benefit in considering the merger of particular TSIs for high speed and 
conventional rail so that legislative documentation can be reduced and rail can be considered 
from  a  ‘total  system’  perspective  with  the  potential  to  reduce  overall  cost  and  improve 
benefits. A merger of both interoperability directives is also being considered in the context of 
simplification and better regulation. 

The  monitoring  of  the  derogations  granted  against  TSI  is  an  important  activity  of  the 
Committee,  as  the  scope  and  quantity  of  derogations  has  a  direct  impact  on  the  progress  of 
interoperability.  

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Future reporting on the progress of interoperability, taking into consideration the information 
available  in  the  national  rolling  stock  and  infrastructure  registers,  will  be  provided  by  the 
European Rail Agency and the first of their reports will be made in 2007.  

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