Europe

The European Union has rail at the top of its transport agenda with specific initiatives covering open access to infrastructure, building a single European supply market and creating a trans-European network. All these initiatives have the potential for significant impact on the operation, regulation and management of safety on the GB rail network through directives, harmonisation of standards, new industry structures and research and development.

The European interoperability directives, the Railway Safety Directive and the GB legislation which enacts these Directives are available from the Department for Transport website. Also available from the Department for Transport is a map illustrating the routes defined as the GB part of the trans-European network.

RSSB plays a leading role, via Industry Standards Coordination Committee, Safety Policy Group and Standards Committees, in facilitating industry’s input into the development of various European workstreams being led by the European Railway Agency. The objective of this work is to enable the GB industry to influence as much as possible the final shape of the various directives, Technical Specifications for Interoperability and other workstreams.

Interoperability is at the heart of our work and RSSB together with the Department for Transport, the Office of Rail Regulation and other governmental bodies is supporting the rail industry to enable its application in GB. The benefits are appreciable, not only because it opens frontiers within Europe, but it also offers access to a single market in all member states of the European Union.

Please contact Adam Milligan on 020 7904 7629 if you have any queries on the implementation of interoperability and Graham Arkwright on 020 7904 7963 for more information on the Railway Safety Directive or the European Rail Agency.

In addition, you can get a general overview of the emerging European legislation, which may affect the GB mainline railway, from the Safety Legislation Update. Please contact Stephen McKay on 020 7904 7527 for more information.