Subject matter and objectives
In order to provide for effective protection of passengers and encourage rail travel, this Regulation establishes rules applicable to rail transport as regards the following:
(a)
non-discrimination between passengers with regard to transport conditions and the provision of tickets;
(b)
the liability of railway undertakings and their insurance obligations for passengers and their luggage;
(c)
passengers’ rights in the event of an accident arising from the use of railway services and resulting in death, personal injury or loss of, or damage to, their luggage;
(d)
passengers’ rights in the event of disruption, such as cancellation or delay, including their right to compensation;
(e)
minimum and accurate information, including on the issuing of tickets, to be provided in an accessible format and in a timely manner to passengers;
(f)
non-discrimination against, and assistance for, persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility;
(g)
the definition and monitoring of service quality standards and the management of risks to the personal security of passengers;
(h)
the handling of complaints;
(i)
general rules on enforcement.
Scope
1. This Regulation shall apply to international and domestic rail journeys and services throughout the Union provided by one or more railway undertakings licensed in accordance with Directive 2012/34/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 10 ) .
2. Member States may exempt from the application of this Regulation services which are operated strictly for historical or touristic use. That exemption does not apply in relation to Articles 13 and 14.
3. Exemptions granted in accordance with Article 2(4) and (6) of Regulation (EC) No 1371/2007 before 6 June 2021 shall remain valid until the date that those exemptions expire. Exemptions granted in accordance with Article 2(5) of Regulation (EC) No 1371/2007 before 6 June 2021 shall remain valid until 7 June 2023.
4. Before the expiry of an exemption to the domestic rail passenger services granted pursuant to Article 2(4) of Regulation (EC) No 1371/2007, Member States may exempt such domestic rail passenger services from the application of Articles 15, 17 and 19, points (a) and (b) of Article 20(2) and Article 30(2) of this Regulation for an additional period of no more than five years.
5. Until 7 June 2030 Member States may provide that Article 10 shall not apply where it is not technically feasible for an infrastructure manager to distribute real-time data within the meaning of Article 10(1) to any railway undertaking, ticket vendor, tour operator or station manager. At least every two years, the Member States shall reassess the extent to which it is technically feasible to distribute such data.
6. Subject to paragraph 8, Member States may exempt the following services from the application of this Regulation:
(a)
urban, suburban and regional rail passenger services;
(b)
international rail passenger services of which a significant part, including at least one scheduled station stop, is operated outside the Union.
7. Member States shall inform the Commission of exemptions granted pursuant to paragraphs 2, 4, 5 and 6 and shall present the reasons for those exemptions.
8. Exemptions granted in accordance with point (a) of paragraph 6 shall not apply in relation to Articles 5, 11, 13, 14, 21, 22, 27 and 28.
Where those exemptions concern regional rail passenger services, they shall also not apply in relation to Articles 6 and 12, Article 18(3) and Chapter V.
Notwithstanding the second subparagraph of this paragraph, exemptions concerning regional rail passenger services to the application of Articles 12(1) and 18(3) may apply until 7 June 2028.
Definitions
For the purposes of this Regulation the following definitions apply:
(1)
‘railway undertaking’ means a railway undertaking as defined in point (1) of Article 3 of Directive 2012/34/EU;
(2)
‘infrastructure manager’ means an infrastructure manager as defined in point (2) of Article 3 of Directive 2012/34/EU;
(3)
‘station manager’ means an organisational entity in a Member State, which has been made responsible for the management of one or more railway stations and which may be the infrastructure manager;
(4)
‘tour operator’ means an organiser or retailer as defined in points (8) and (9) respectively of Article 3 of Directive (EU) 2015/2302 of the European Parliament and of the Council ( 11 ) other than a railway undertaking;
(5)
‘ticket vendor’ means any retailer of rail transport services selling tickets, including through-tickets, on the basis of a contract or other arrangement between the retailer and one or more railway undertakings;
(6)
‘transport contract’ means a contract of rail carriage for reward or free of charge between a railway undertaking and a passenger for the provision of one or more transport services;
(7)
‘ticket’ means valid evidence, regardless of its form, of the conclusion of a transport contract;
(8)
‘reservation’ means an authorisation, on paper or in electronic form, giving entitlement to transportation subject to previously confirmed personalised transport arrangements;
(9)
‘through-ticket’ means a through-ticket as defined in point (35) of Article 3 of Directive 2012/34/EU;
(10)
‘service’ means a passenger rail transport service that operates between rail stations according to a timetable, including transport services offered for re-routing;
(11)
‘journey’ means the carriage of a passenger between a station of departure and a station of arrival;
(12)
‘domestic rail passenger service’ means a rail passenger service which does not cross a border of a Member State;
(13)
‘urban and suburban rail passenger service’ means a rail passenger service within the meaning of point (6) of Article 3 of Directive 2012/34/EU;
(14)
‘regional rail passenger service’ means a rail passenger service within the meaning of point (7) of Article 3 of Directive 2012/34/EU;
(15)
‘long-distance rail passenger service’ means a rail passenger service which is not an urban, a suburban or a regional rail passenger service;
(16)
‘international rail passenger service’ means a rail passenger service crossing at least one border of a Member State the principal purpose of which is to carry passengers between stations located in different Member States or in a Member State and a third country;
(17)
‘delay’ means the time difference between the time the passenger was scheduled to arrive in accordance with the published timetable and the time of his or her actual or expected arrival at the station of final destination;
(18)
‘arrival’ means the moment when the doors of the train are opened on the destination platform and disembarkation is allowed;
(19)
‘travel pass’ or ‘season ticket’ means a ticket for an unlimited number of journeys which provides the authorised holder with rail travel on a particular route or network during a specified period;
(20)
‘missed connection’ means a situation where a passenger misses one or more services in the course of a rail journey, sold in the form of a through-ticket, as a result of the delay or cancellation of one or more previous services, or of the departure of a service before the scheduled departure time;
(21)
‘person with disabilities’ and ‘person with reduced mobility’ mean any person who has a permanent or temporary physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairment which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder his or her full and effective use of transport on an equal basis with other passengers or whose mobility when using transport is reduced due to age;
(22)
‘station’ means a location on a railway where a rail passenger service can start, stop or end.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
