The regulation on passenger rights still needs work within the Council of the EU to reach a compromise, according to a progress report published on Friday 7 June. In particular, the Member States want to strike a certain balance with regard to reimbursement times.
Presented in November 2023 (see EUROPE 13303/5), this draft regulation on passenger rights in the context of multimodal travel is part of the ‘package’ on passenger mobility. Its aim is to prohibit any discrimination between passengers with regard to transport conditions and ticket sales, and to make information accessible.
Delegations questioned the consistency of approaches between different modes of transport and with existing EU sectoral legislation on passenger rights. They stressed the need to take account of the exemptions provided for in this legislation. Although they all agreed that the rights of passengers, particularly the most vulnerable, must be protected, many of them expressed concerns about the administrative burden. All delegations expressed general reservations.
The majority of delegations felt that the scope should be clarified, particularly with regard to exemptions. At the working group meeting on Friday 31 May, a compromise text submitted by the Belgian Presidency was widely welcomed. It includes a more precise definition of what these journeys cover, so that carriers and intermediaries can better identify their obligations and passengers their rights. It stipulates that the regulation applies only to single multimodal tickets and combined multimodal tickets, and excludes seasonal tickets and travel passes.
This compromise also clarifies the conditions that the journey must meet for the regulation to apply, namely that, where the journey consists of a scheduled bus or coach transport service, the scheduled distance of that transport service is 250 km or more. This journey must also include transport services for which a specific departure time is explicitly indicated. The Presidency also specifies that, if a segment of the multimodal journey does not meet these conditions, the proposed regulation should nevertheless apply to those parts of the journey made up of at least two consecutive transport services which do meet these conditions.
Given that the proposal lays down certain obligations for managers of multimodal passenger transport hubs, the Presidency felt it necessary to clarify the text by explicitly providing for the obligation to designate such a manager.
Further discussion will be needed on reimbursement times, which vary considerably from one mode of transport to another. Work on the rights of disabled people and people with reduced mobility must also continue, particularly on the issue of compensation for mobility equipment, assistive devices and assistance dogs.
European ministers are due to take note of this report at the Transport Council meeting in Luxembourg on Tuesday 18 June.
To read the report, go to https://aeur.eu/f/cls (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)