Brussels, 05/06/2007 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has just presented the Council with a draft revision of the common rules applicable to international passenger transport by coach or bus. It believes that these provisions (Directive 96/26 and EEC Regulations 684/92 and 12/98) now have to comply with the new legal framework established by the regulation on public passenger transport by railway and road, which is currently being adopted. The Commission considers that these provisions should “also be clarified and in some cases simplified. Experience has demonstrated that some legal provisions lead to wasteful administrative charges”.
The Commission proposal aims to merge the two regulations on market access and road transport. Overall, modifications it will be introducing are as follows: 1) A simpler and faster procedure to authorise international regular services: certain grounds for refusal provided for in the current authorisation regime are outdated and should be removed. Authorisation should henceforth be granted unless there are clearly specified grounds for refusal attributable to the applicant. Only one ground for refusal relating to the relevant market remains, namely that the service applied for would seriously affect the viability of a comparable service operated under a public service obligation on the direct sections concerned. 2) Simplified and standardised Community licence: more detailed specifications are provided for the format of the Community licence and of the certified true copies in order to reduce the administrative burden and delays, especially at roadside checks. 3) Enhanced legal provisions obliging a member state to act, when requested to do so by another member state, in the case where a carrier to whom it delivered a Community licence commits an infringement in another country. Such action should take the form of at least a warning. Enhanced procedures to communicate between member states are put in place using the contact points established pursuant to the new Regulation on the admission to the occupation of road transport operator. The Commission's draft proposal can be consulted at: (http: //eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/fr/com/2007/com2007_0264fr01.pdf). (ol)