Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-11-24-Speech-2-481"
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"en.20091124.38.2-481"2
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"Mr President, I rise on behalf of the Committee on Transport and Tourism to introduce this oral question which has been prompted by recent accidents in Italy and the Netherlands, both of which, sadly, had fatalities.
I know that the problems, particularly in regard to rail freight, but not exclusively in that area, lie firmly at the door of Council. I and my committee want to work with the Commission and the industry to develop a safe, integrated, interoperable railway network.
My committee is now beginning to question whether the safety side, particularly as it refers to freight wagons, is starting to be compromised by this failure to implement European legislation.
If this is so, then action is needed urgently. But action is also needed to deliver both integration and interoperability if passenger railways are to develop to their full potential and if rail freight is, frankly, to survive.
I think it right, however, to point out that rail is still one of the safest modes of transport and certainly it is the intention of my committee to do all that we can to ensure that this remains the case. Hence this oral question.
We here in the European Parliament have always taken rail safety very seriously. This has culminated in the recent Rail Safety Directive and follows on from a long line of railway initiatives and reports taken by Parliament over many years.
Yet we have a frustration born out of the inability over the years of both railway companies and national governments to act in key areas. This manifests itself when you examine key legislation and, in particular, the implementation of such legislation in international law, which has been at best patchy and at worst downright protectionist.
The Commission’s own progress report on the implementation of the Rail Safety Directive says that national standards and rules are creating a barrier to a fully integrated rail system. This then poses the question as to whether those national rules are also compromising safety.
And what about interoperability in the rail sector? Are national barriers preventing progress in this area as well, or is there an unwillingness on the part of the rail industry to embrace the concept of interoperability?
Why is progress on ERTMS so slow and are we going to fail in our attempt to have the ECM scheme in place by the end of next year?
These are all questions that as a committee we seek answers to. And, allied to that, we would like to know from the Commission what national barriers and loopholes are currently halting progress on interoperability, and which Member States are the most obstructive.
Following on from that, will the Commission use any legal powers at its disposal to ensure compliance with Community law?"@en1
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