COTIF in the framework of ESCAP F. Davenne Bangkok September 2017
COTIF uniform railway law to connect Europe, Asia and Africa 2 1893 - first international Convention regarding international freight traffic by rail Currently - base Convention with seven Appendices covering various aspects of international traffic by rail Is international law Member States can make declarations not to apply selected parts of COTIF Freight / Passenger Contracts Dangerous Goods Regulation Exchange of dangerous goods wagons Technical Regulation Safe exchange of vehicles Legal interoperability Technical interoperability
Added value and legal scope
Added value of uniform railway law to connect Europe, Asia and Africa 5
COTIF base convention and Appendices - relation to EU and UN rules 6 COTIF : Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail LEGAL INTEROPERABILITY TECHNICAL INTEROPERABILITY Appendix А Appendix B Appendix C Appendix D Appendix E Appendix F Appendix G CIV CIM RID CUV CUI APTU ATMF Uniform Rules concerning the Contract of International Carriage of Passengers by Rail Uniform Rules concerning the Contract of International Carriage of Goods by Rail Regulation concerning the International Carriage of Dangerous Goods by Rail Uniform Rules concerning Contracts of Use of Vehicles in International Rail Traffic Uniform Rules concerning the Contract of Use of Infrastructure in International Rail Traffic Uniform Rules concerning the Validation of Technical Standards and Adoption of Uniform Technical Prescriptions applicable to Railway Material Uniform Rules concerning the Technical Admission of Railway Material used in International Traffic
COTIF: neutral regulations 7 The legal regime can be applied irrespective of the national political, legal or economic system. In particular: railway undertakings may be private or State-owned; the railway market may be fully or partly liberalised or non-liberalised; the railway market structure may be vertically integrated (railway undertaking and infrastructure manager form a single entity) or separated (railway undertaking and infrastructure manager are separate and independent entities); railway undertakings may cooperate or compete. => COTIF s broad geographical scope demonstrates that it works, irrespective of the political, legal or economic system that exists in States that have acceded to the COTIF uniform legal system.
Implementation of COTIF regulations: A matter of partnership
Application of CIM/CIV Uniform Rules 9
Technical implementation of international rail services 10 APTU ATMF UTPs TSIs Detailed engineering System Specific standards (common) procurement specifications
Exchange of vehicles The traditional model for international rail transport Requires, e.g.: Wagons and passenger coaches approved for international operation Harmonised vehicle interfaces Clear responsibilities concerning vehicle maintenance Multiple railway undertakings to bring vehicle to its destination 11 Border crossing station
Technical interoperability: future Appendix H Running complete trains safely across borders from departure to destination 12 Requires, e.g.: Rolling stock approved for international operation Railway undertakings certified to operate in multiple States Infrastructure managers capable of working with different RUs Clearly defined responsibilities at interfaces between RUs and IM Separation between State Authorities and national railway operator
Telematics Application for freight : transposition into COTIF 13 Planning of the transposition: In 2015, the OTIF Secretariat issued a study concerning the possible transposition of TAF into COTIF. The study addressed the question of whether TAF should be transposed and if so, how. It was suggested that the Secretariat organise a TAF workshop aimed at non-eu MSs. This workshop has been co-organised with ERA. The transposition could be prepared in 2016/17 to be voted on at the CTE in June 2017 at the earliest. The report and the transposition question were then discussed in the CTE and WG TECH. In general, there was support for transposition. As a next step, the CTE should mandate the start of the transposition work
14 Organisation intergouvernementale pour les transports internationaux ferroviaires Zwischenstaatliche Organisation für den internationalen Eisenbahnverkehr Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail Gryphenhübeliweg 30 CH - 3006 Berne + 41 (0)31 359 10 10 media@otif.org www.otif.org