Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION endorsing the Shift2Rail Master Plan
Date: 2014-12-16
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: innovation, provision of services, public-private partnership, rail transport, railway industry, research and development, sustainable development













EUR-Lex - 52014PC0739 - EN











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52014PC0739

Proposal for a COUNCIL DECISION endorsing the Shift2Rail Master Plan /* COM/2014/0739 final - 2014/0354 (NLE) */









EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1.           CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
Council Regulation (EU) No 642/2014 of 16
June 2014 establishing the Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking (hereinafter "S2R
Regulation")[1] entered into force on 7 July 2014, thereby formally establishing a new public-private partnership to manage research and innovation
activities in support of the development of better rail services in Europe. 
The founding members of the Shift2Rail
Joint Undertaking are identified in the S2R Regulation and include the Union, represented by the Commission, as well as eight partners from the industry, namely:
Alstom Transport, Ansaldo STS, Bombardier Transportation, Construcciones y
Auxiliar de Ferrocariles, Network Rail, Siemens Aktiengesellschaft, Thales and
Trafikverket. 
Additional associated members are to be
selected through an open call for membership, launched by the Commission within
3 months of the entry into force of the S2R Regulation.
Shift2Rail's goal is to support the
objectives of the 2011 Transport White Paper[2]
and the modal shift towards rail from other less sustainable transport modes by
making rail more cost-efficient and attractive. 
The innovative technologies and solutions
to be developed, demonstrated and validated by Shift2Rail are expected to
double the capacity of the railway transport system, to reduce its lifecycle
cost by 50% and to decrease unreliability and late arrivals by 50%. The Joint
Undertaking will also support the global leadership of the European rail
industry, thereby creating jobs and increasing exports. 
In accordance with Articles 1(4) and 2(a)
of Annex I to the S2R Regulation the Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking should
establish, develop and ensure the effective and efficient implementation of a
Master Plan. This Master Plan should be a forward-looking document defining the
priority research and innovation activities to drive innovation in the rail
sector in the long term.
In accordance with Article 1(3) of Annex I
to the S2R Regulation, the Shift2Rail Master Plan should be structured around
the five following thematic areas or 'Innovation Programmes’ (‘IPs’):
·                        
IP1: Cost-efficient and Reliable Trains,
including high capacity trains and high speed trains; 
·                        
IP2: Advanced Traffic Management & Control
Systems;
·                        
IP3: Cost-efficient and Reliable High Capacity
Infrastructure;
·                        
IP4: IT Solutions for Attractive Railway
Services;
·                        
IP5: Technologies for Sustainable &
Attractive European Freight.
2.           RESULTS OF CONSULTATIONS
WITH THE INTERESTED PARTIES AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
The initial version of the Shift2Rail Master
Plan has been developed by the Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking as initially
constituted by its Founding Members in a process led by the Commission and in consultation
with the European Railway Agency and the European Rail Research Advisory
Council (ERRAC) Technology Platform.
It also integrates comments received from a
wide range of relevant stakeholders during numerous individual meetings with
sector representatives and a public consultation meeting held on 20 June 2014,
to which close to 200 stakeholders took part.
The consultation revealed that the current
version of the Master Plan is well balanced and broadly supported.
On 24 September 2014, the Governing Board
of the Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking has approved the initial version of the
Shift2Rail Master Plan.
3.           LEGAL ELEMENTS OF THE
PROPOSAL
This proposal concerns the endorsement by
the Council of the Shift2Rail Master Plan, following the procedure described in
Article 1(4) of Annex I to the S2R Regulation.
2014/0354 (NLE)
Proposal for a
COUNCIL DECISION
endorsing the Shift2Rail Master Plan
THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to Council Regulation (EU) No 642/2014 of 16 June 2014
establishing the Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking, in particular Article 1(4) of
Annex I to this Regulation[3] , 
Having regard to the proposal from the
European Commission,
Whereas:
(1)       The Shift2Rail Master Plan should be established
and developed by the Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking, in consultation with the
European Railway Agency and the European Rail Research Advisory Council (ERRAC)
Technology Platform, to drive innovation in the rail sector in the long term,
(2)       The Shift2Rail Master Plan should identify the
key priorities and the essential operational and technological innovations
required from all stakeholders to achieve the objectives of the Shift2Rail
Joint Undertaking outlined in Article 2 of Regulation (EU) No 642/2014,
(3)       The Shift2Rail Master Plan should be performance
driven and structured around a limited number of key thematic areas, or Innovation
Programmes as identified in Article 1(3) of Annex I to Regulation (EU) No
642/2014,
(4)       The version of the Shift2Rail Master Plan approved by the
Governing Board on 24 September 2014 and integrating major contributions from
relevant stakeholders, constitutes the basis for the
call for associated members launched by the Commission on 6 October 2014 in
accordance with Article 4(2) of Annex I to Regulation (EU) No 642/2014 and the
basis for establishing the Shift2Rail Joint
Undertaking’s work plan,
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION: 
Sole Article
The Shift2Rail strategic
Master Plan is hereby endorsed.
Done at Brussels,
                                                                       For
the Council
                                                                       The
President
[1]               OJ L 177, 17.6.2014, p. 9. 
[2]               White Paper "Roadmap to a Single European
Transport Area – Towards a competitive and resource efficient transport
system", COM(2011) 144 final.
[3]               OJ L 177, 17.6.2014, p. 9.