Activities of Philippe DE BACKER related to 2013/0029(COD)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2012/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 November 2012 establishing a single European railway area, as regards the opening of the market for domestic passenger transport services by rail and the governance of the railway infrastructure PDF (653 KB) DOC (799 KB)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2012/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 November 2012 establishing a single European railway area, as regards the opening of the market for domestic passenger transport services by rail and the governance of the railway infrastructure
Amendments (48)
Amendment 22 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 2 a (new)
Recital 2 a (new)
(2a) Several studies and questionnaires demonstrate that in Member States who have opened their markets for domestic passenger transport, such as Sweden and the United Kingdom, the railway market grew, including more satisfied passengers and personnel.
Amendment 24 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4 a (new)
Recital 4 a (new)
(4a) The opening of the market for domestic passenger transport will have a positive impact on the working of the European railway market; this will lead to more flexibility and more possibilities for companies and passengers. Railway personnel will also benefit from the opening, as it will improve their chances to provide their services to new players on the market. Experienced workers can create an added value to the new players, leading to better labour conditions.
Amendment 25 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4 b (new)
Recital 4 b (new)
(4b) Member States are responsible for the organisation of their labour markets for railway personnel. They should however make sure that the way the labour market is organised, does not harm the quality of the service. European laws do already provide for a clear framework for the protection of railway workers.
Amendment 28 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 9 a (new)
Recital 9 a (new)
(9a) Vertically integrated undertakings can never have the necessary independence between the infrastructure manager and the railway undertaking. The structure can therefore lead to cross subsidising, which hampers the level playing field and leads to distortion of competition.
Amendment 32 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 15
Recital 15
(15) Regulatory bodies should assess the potential economic impact of domestic passenger services provided under open access conditions on existing public service contracts as well as the potential economic impact of a new or altered public service contract on services provided under open access conditions by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, following a request made by interested parties and on the basis of an objective economic analysis.
Amendment 33 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 17
Recital 17
(17) The assessment of whether the economic equilibrium of the public service contract or of the service provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, would be compromised should take into account predetermined criteria. Such criteria and the details of procedure to be followed may evolve over time, in particular in the light of the experience of regulatory bodies, competent authorities and railway undertakings and may take into account the specific characteristics of domestic passenger services.
Amendment 50 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4 a (new)
Recital 4 a (new)
(4a) The opening of the market for domestic passenger transport will have a positive impact on the working of the European railway market; this will lead to more flexibility and more possibilities for companies and passengers. Railway personnel will also benefit from the opening, as it will improve their chances to provide their services to new players on the market. Experienced workers can create an added value to the new players, leading to better labour conditions.
Amendment 51 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 4 b (new)
Recital 4 b (new)
Amendment 54 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 3 – point 5
Article 1 – point 3 – point 5
Amendment 58 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 4
Article 1 – point 4
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 7d – paragraph 1
Article 7d – paragraph 1
Member States shall ensure that infrastructure managers set up and organise Coordination Committees for each network. Membership of this committee shall be open at least to the infrastructure manager, known applicants in the sense of Article 8(3) and, upon their request, potential applicants, their representative organisations, representatives of users of the rail freight and passenger transport services and, where relevant, regional and local authorities. Member State representatives and the regulatory body concerned shall be invited to the meetings of the Coordination Committee as observers.
Amendment 59 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point a
Article 1 – point 6 – point a
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 11 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Member States may limit the right of creating new or altered passenger services under public service contracts when the new or altered public service contracts compromise the economic equilibrium of the existing services provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive;
Amendment 60 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point b
Article 1 – point 6 – point b
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
In order to determine whether the economic equilibrium of a public service contract or of a service provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive in case of creation of a new public service contract or alteration of an existing public service contract would be compromised, the relevant regulatory body or bodies referred to in Article 55 shall make an objective economic analysis and base its decision on pre-determined criteria. They shall determine this after a request from any of the following, submitted within one month from the information on the intended passenger service referred to in Article 38(4):
Amendment 62 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point b – subpoint d a (new)
Article 1 – point 6 – point b – subpoint d a (new)
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point da (new)
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point da (new)
(da) the railway undertaking which has been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive.
Amendment 62 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 7
Recital 7
(7) Cross-border issues such as track- access charges should be addressed efficiently between infrastructure managers of the different Member States through the establishment of a European network of infrastructure managers.
Amendment 63 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point c – subpoint d
Article 1 – point 6 – point c – subpoint d
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – point d
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – point d
the railway undertaking seeking access or which has been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive.
Amendment 64 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point c
Article 1 – point 6 – point c
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 2 a (new)
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 2 a (new)
In case the regulatory body decides that the economic equilibrium of a service provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, would be compromised by the intended new or altered public service contract, it shall indicate possible changes to such contracts or make recommendations for compensation of the affected railway undertaking.
Amendment 68 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 8
Article 1 – point 8
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 38 – paragraph 4
Article 38 – paragraph 4
Where an applicant intends to request infrastructure capacity with a view to operating a passenger service according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive or to operating a new or altered public service contract, it shall inform the infrastructure managers and the regulatory bodies concerned no less than 18 months before the entry into force of the working timetable to which the request for capacity relates. In order to enable regulatory bodies concerned to assess the potential economic impact on existing public service contracts or on the service provided by the railway undertaking which has been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, regulatory bodies shall ensure that any competent authority that has awarded a rail passenger service on that route defined in a public service contract or a new or altered public service contract on a route defined under open access conditions, any other interested competent authority with the right to limit access under Article 11 and any railway undertaking performing the public service contract on the route of that passenger service, or providing a service according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, is informed without undue delay and at the latest within five days.
Amendment 70 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 9
Article 1 – point 9
Directive 2012/34/EC
Article 63 – paragraph 1
Article 63 – paragraph 1
By 31 December 20240, the Commission shall evaluate the impact of this Directive on the rail sector and shall submit to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions a report on its implementation.
Amendment 71 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 9
Article 1 – point 9
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 63 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 63 – paragraph 1 a (new)
By 2020, the Commission shall also investigate whether the organisation of the national labour market hampers further market opening, integration and the quality of services provided to the customers. If appropriate, the Commission shall propose new legislative measures to ensure a level playing field for all railway undertakings.
Amendment 78 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) The existing requirements for the independence of infrastructure managers from railway transport undertakings, as laid down in Directive 2012/34/EU, only cover the essential functions of the infrastructure manager, which are the decision-making on train path allocation, and the decision-making on infrastructure charging. It is however necessary that all the functions are exercised in an independent way, since other functions may equally be used to discriminate against competitors. This is in particular true for decisions on access to ticketing services, stations and depots, on investments or on maintenance which may be made to favour the parts of the network which are mainly used by the transport operators of the integrated undertaking. Decisions on the planning of maintenance works may influence the availability of train paths for the competitors.
Amendment 81 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 9 a (new)
Recital 9 a (new)
(9a) Despite the implementation of the safeguards set out in Directive 2013/34/EU guaranteeing the independence of the infrastructure manager, vertically integrated undertakings could use their structure to give railway operators belonging to such undertakings an undue competitive edge.
Amendment 84 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) The existing requirements of Directive 2012/34/EU only includeotal separation (in legal, organisational and, decision-making iandependence. This does not entirely exclude the possibility of maintaining an integrated undertaking, as long as these three categories of independence are ensured. Concerning the decision-making independence it must be ensured that the appropriate safeguards exclude control of an integrated accounting terms) of infrastructure management and all undertakings over the decision-making of an infrastructure manager. However, even the full application of such safeguards does not ffering rail services on such infrastructure is the only way of guarding against anti-completely remove all the possibilities for discriminatory behaviour towards competitors which exist in the presence of a vertically integrated undertaking. In particular, the potential for cross- subsidisation still exists in integrated structures, or at least it is very difficult for regulatory bodies to control and enforce safeguards which are established to prevent such cross-subsidisation. An institutional separation of infrastructure management and transport operitive practices and of successfully building, for the benefit of all passengers, an open, non-discriminatory European rail market that is capable of stimulating technological and commercial innovation isn the most effective measure to solve these problemsrail sector.
Amendment 95 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) Member States should therefore be required to ensure that the same legal or natural person or persons are not entitled to exercise control over an infrastructure manager and, at the same time, exercise control or any right over a railway undertaking. Conversely, control over a railway undertaking should preclude the possibility of exercising control or any right over an infrastructure managerThis Directive aims to establish free and fair competition between all railway undertakings, and therefore precludes a railway undertaking from retaining a vertically integrated model as defined in Article 3.
Amendment 99 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 12
Recital 12
Amendment 111 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) Despite the implementation of the safeguards guaranteeing independence vertically integrated undertakings could abuse of their structure to provide undue competitive advantages for railway operators belonging to such undertakings, For this reason, without prejudice to Art 258 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the Commission should verify, upon request of a Member State, a railway undertaking or on its own initiative, that these safeguards are effectively implemented and that any remaining distortions of competition are removed. In case the Commission is not in a position to confirm that this has been achieved, all Member States should have the possibility to limit or revoke access rights of the integrated operators concerned.
Amendment 117 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 15
Recital 15
(15) Regulatory bodies should assess the potential economic impact of domestic passenger services provided under open access conditions on existing public service contracts as well as the potential economic impact of a new or altered public service contract on services provided under open access conditions by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, following a request made by interested parties and on the basis of an objective economic analysis.
Amendment 118 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 17
Recital 17
(17) The assessment of whether the economic equilibrium of the public service contract or of the service provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, would be compromised should take into account predetermined criteria. Such criteria and the details of procedure to be followed may evolve over time, in particular in the light of the experience of regulatory bodies, competent authorities and railway undertakings and may take into account the specific characteristics of domestic passenger services.
Amendment 123 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 19
Recital 19
(19) In order to increase the attractiveness of railway services for passengers, Member States should be in a position to require railway undertakings operating domestic passenger services to participate in a common information and integrated ticketing scheme for the supply of tickets, through-tickets and reservations. If sSuch a scheme is established, it should be ensured that it does not create market distortion or discriminate between railway undertakings.
Amendment 139 #
Proposal for a directive
Recital 19 b (new)
Recital 19 b (new)
(19b) In light of the experience acquired through the network of regulatory bodies established with Article 57, the Commission should draw up a legislative proposal to replace the network with a European Regulatory Body, formalising its procedures and giving it legal personality, not later than 31 December 2019, in time for the opening of domestic passenger transport services by rail. That body should have a supervisory and arbitration function enabling it to deal with cross-border and international problems and to hear appeals against decisions taken by national regulatory bodies.
Amendment 237 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 3
Article 1 – point 3
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 7 – paragraph 5
Article 7 – paragraph 5
Amendment 361 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 4
Article 1 – point 4
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 7 c – paragraph 1
Article 7 c – paragraph 1
1. Upon request of a Member State, a railway undertaking or on its own initiative, the Commission shall decide whether infrastructure managers which are part of a vertically integrated undertaking fulfil the requirements of Article 7a and Article 7b and whether the implementation of these requirements is appropriate to ensure a level playing field for all railway undertakings and the absence of distortion of competition in the relevant market.
Amendment 387 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 4
Article 1 – point 4
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 7 d – paragraph 1
Article 7 d – paragraph 1
1. Member States shall ensure that infrastructure managers set up and organise Coordination Committees for each network. Membership of this committee shall be open at least to the infrastructure manager, known applicants in the sense of Article 8(3) and, upon their request, potential applicants, their representative organisations, representatives of users of the rail freight and passenger transport services and, where relevant, regional and local authorities. Member State representatives and the regulatory body concerned shall be invited to the meetings of the Coordination Committee as observers.
Amendment 400 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 4
Article 1 – point 4
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 7 d – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point g (a) (new)
Article 7 d – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 – point g (a) (new)
(ga) issues faced by the users of the rail freight and passenger transport services including for instance the service performance, the infrastructure charges, the amount and the transparency of the rail service prices
Amendment 416 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 4
Article 1 – point 4
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 7 e – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
Article 7 e – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
Member States shall ensure that infrastructure managers participate and cooperate in a network to develop the Union rail infrastructure, in particular to ensure timely and efficient implementation of the trans-European transport network, including the core network corridors, rail freight corridors according to Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 and the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) deployment plan laid down in Decision 2012/88/EU. This network shall also address efficiently cross-border issues such as track-access charges.
Amendment 432 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 4
Article 1 – point 4
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 7 e – paragraph 2
Article 7 e – paragraph 2
2. The Network shall participate in the market monitoring activities referred to in Article 15 and benchmark the efficiency of infrastructure managers on the basis of common indicators and quality criteria, such as the reliability, capacity, availability, punctuality and safety of their networks, asset quality and utilisation, maintenance, renewals, enhancements, investments, transparency of the charging framework and of the charging rules and financial efficiency.
Amendment 452 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point a
Article 1 – point 6 – point a
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 1
Article 11 – paragraph 1
1. Member States may limit the right of access provided for in Article 10(2) to passenger services between a given place of departure and a given destination when one or more public service contracts cover the same route or an alternative route if the exercise of this right would compromises the economic equilibrium of the public service contract or contracts in question.
Amendment 456 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point a
Article 1 – point 6 – point a
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1a (new)
Article 11 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1a (new)
Member States may limit the right of creating new or altered passenger services under public service contracts when the new or altered public service contracts compromise the economic equilibrium of the existing services provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive;
Amendment 461 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point b
Article 1 – point 6 – point b
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1
In order to determine whether the economic equilibrium of a public service contract or of a service provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive in case of creation of a new public service contract or alteration of an existing public service contract would be compromised, the relevant regulatory body or bodies referred to in Article 55 shall make an objective economic analysis and base its decision on pre-determined criteria. They shall determine this after a request from any of the following, submitted within one month from the information on the intended passenger service referred to in Article 38(4):
Amendment 464 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point b
Article 1 – point 6 – point b
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new)
Article 11 – paragraph 2 – point d a (new)
(da) new the railway undertaking which has been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive
Amendment 468 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point c
Article 1 – point 6 – point c
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – point (d)
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – point (d)
d) the railway undertaking seeking access. or which has been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive
Amendment 471 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 6 – point c
Article 1 – point 6 – point c
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 2a (new)
Article 11 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 2a (new)
In case the regulatory body decides that the economic equilibrium of a service provided by railway undertakings which have been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, would be compromised by the intended new or altered public service contract, it shall indicate possible changes to such contracts or make recommendations for compensation of the affected railway undertaking.
Amendment 486 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 7
Article 1 – point 7
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 13 a – paragraph 1
Article 13 a – paragraph 1
1. Without prejudice to Regulation (EC) No 1371/2007 and Directive 2010/40/EU, Member States mayshall require railway undertakings operating domestic passenger services to participate in a common information and integrated ticketing scheme for the supply of tickets, through- tickets and reservations or decide to give the power to competent authorities to establish such a scheme. If such a scheme is established, Member States shall ensure that it doesRegulatory bodies shall ensure that common information and integrated ticketing schemes do not create market distortion or discriminate between railway undertakings and that it is managed by a public or private legal entity or an association of all railway undertakings operating passenger services.
Amendment 512 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 8
Article 1 – point 8
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 38 – paragraph 4
Article 38 – paragraph 4
4. Where an applicant intends to request infrastructure capacity with a view to operating a passenger service according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive or to operating a new or altered public service contract, it shall inform the infrastructure managers and the regulatory bodies concerned no less than 18 months before the entry into force of the working timetable to which the request for capacity relates. In order to enable regulatory bodies concerned to assess the potential economic impact on existing public service contracts or on the service provided by the railway undertaking which has been granted access to railway infrastructure according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive, regulatory bodies shall ensure that any competent authority that has awarded a rail passenger service on thata route defined in a public service contract or a new or altered public service contract on a route defined under open access conditions, any other interested competent authority with the right to limit access under Article 11 and any railway undertaking performing the public service contract on the route of that passenger service, or providing a service according to Article 10, paragraph 2 of this Directive is informed without undue delay and at the latest within five days.
Amendment 548 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 8 d (new)
Article 1 – point 8 d (new)
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 57 – paragraph 9 a (new)
Article 57 – paragraph 9 a (new)
8d. In Article 57, the following new paragraph 9a is added: 9a. The European Commission shall adopt a legislative proposal to establish and make operational the European Regulatory Body not later than 31 December 2019. The new Body is intended to replace the European Network of Regulatory Bodies established with Article 57.
Amendment 559 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 9
Article 1 – point 9
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 63 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
Article 63 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1
By 31 December 20240, the Commission shall evaluate the impact of this Directive on the rail sector and shall submit to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions a report on its implementation.
Amendment 561 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 9 a (new)
Article 1 – point 9 a (new)
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 63 – paragraph 2 a (new)
Article 63 – paragraph 2 a (new)
9a. In Article 63 the following new paragraph 2a is added: 2a. By 2020, the Commission shall also investigate whether the organisation of the national labour market hampers further market opening, integration and the quality of services provided to the customers. If appropriate, the Commission shall propose new legislative measures to ensure a level playing field for all railway undertakings.
Amendment 564 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – point 9
Article 1 – point 9
Directive 2012/34/EU
Article 63 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2
Article 63 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2
By the same date, the CommissionEuropean Regulatory Body shall assess whether discriminatory practices or other types of distortion of competition persist in relation to infrastructure managers which are part of a vertically integrated undertakingand shall publish recommendations for further policy measures. The Commission shall, if appropriate, propose new legislative measures based on the recommendations of the network of regulatory bodies.
Amendment 573 #
Proposal for a directive
Article 3 – paragraph 2
Article 3 – paragraph 2
2. Points 5 to 8 of Article 1 shall apply from 1 January 20187 [in time for the working timetable starting on 14 December 20198].