(AGENPARL) – BRUXELLES mer 24 maggio 2023 For over 30 years, the EU has been pursuing the objective of developing an efficient and competitive EU-wide railway network, the single European railway area. By integrating national rail systems, rail should become more competitive, ultimately allowing transport to become more sustainable. Efficient, safe and interoperable rail services need train drivers who can work seamlessly across borders and across operational and language barriers. In the absence of an EU-wide certification scheme, however, EU train drivers seeking to work in another Member State or assigned to operations in several Member States were, for a long time, confronted with a patchwork of different national certification schemes. To smooth the way for train drivers’ mobility and cross-border operations within the EU, in 2007, the EU adopted Directive 2007/59/EC on the certification of train drivers operating locomotives and trains on the railway system in the Community (the ‘Train Drivers’ Directive’ – TDD). By setting up a scheme including a licence with EU-wide validity and complementary certificates for trains and infrastructure, the TDD increased train drivers’ mobility and interoperability. However, as shown in a European Commission ex-post evaluation carried out in 2020, the directive did not solve the fragmentation issue completely. Rail is set to play a key role in further decarbonising transport in line with the 2019 European Green Deal. A growing number of mobile train drivers will be needed if EU high-speed rail and rail freight traffic is to expand significantly in the future, in line with the 2020 sustainable and smart mobility strategy. Moreover, further digitalisation and innovation will require adjustments to training and certification. For these reasons, in its 2022 work programme, the Commission announced a proposal to revise the TDD (expected in July 2023, at the time of drafting).

Fonte : © Unione europea, 2023 – PE

Fonte/Source: https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/it/document/EPRS_BRI(2023)747424