Railway transport: certification of train crews and drivers. 3rd package

The European Parliament adopted a resolution drafted by Gilles SAVARY (PES, FR) and made several amendments to the Commission’s proposal. (Please see the document of 19/04/2005.) In addition to the points listed in that summary:

-Parliament clarified the definitions of "train driver" and "train crew".

-it deleted category C in the harmonised complementary certificate.

-at least three years" professional experience in category B is required for operation of a cross-border transport service.

-Minimum monitoring requirements include medical examinations every three years up to the age of 55 (rather than 60), thereafter every year. It also includes knowledge of infrastructure (including routes and operating rules) : every two years or after any absence from the route concerned of more than one year ; knowledge of rolling stock: every two years and updating of general professional knowledge and knowledge of traffic and safety provisions by way of continuing training: every year.

-Parliament inserted a new clause on the tasks of the competent authorities. These include issuing licences following checks that all the conditions laid down in this Directive have been met, on the basis of the requisite documents to be submitted by applicants, and key inspection tasks.

-Parliament also inserted a new clause on the financing of training and stated that railway undertakings and infrastructure managers shall be contractually responsible for professional training, both basic training and in-service training. A railway undertaking or infrastructure manager employing a train driver whose training has been funded in whole or in part by another railway undertaking or infrastructure manager which the driver has left voluntarily after less than five years' employment shall refund to that undertaking or infrastructure manager the cost of that training. The detailed rules for implementing this provision will be established on the basis of a recommendation drawn up by the Agency in the framework of Regulation 881/2004/EC.