UK: The Department for Transport is seeking feedback on proposed changes to EU Technical Specifications for Interoperability.
While TSIs no longer apply in Great Britain following Brexit, the current requirements were embedded in UK legislation as part of the withdrawal process. The Secretary of State for Transport must now determine whether these domestic regulations should follow or diverge from future TSIs and revisions.
The EU Agency for Railways is currently consulting on the 2022 package of revisions to the TSIs covering telematics applications for freight (TAF TSI) and passenger (TAP TSI) trains, and the UK has been invited to respond to the consultation as a member of the Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail.
At present the Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail only includes equivalent provisions for the TAF TSI, in the form of the UTP TAF. Following any revisions to the TAF TSI, OTIF will consider amending the TAF UTP to align.
As a signatory to COTIF, the UK would be required to comply with any changes to the TAF UTP for the purposes of international traffic. All non-EU OTIF Member States, including the UK, have thus been invited to analyse the proposals and send any comments to ERA by October 31.
UK stakeholders can share comments with DfT’s Rail Interoperability & Safety Team by October 22. It will then submit a response reflecting these comments. Stakeholders may also respond directly to ERA.
TSIs continue to apply in Northern Ireland in accordance with the Northern Ireland Protocol, and so any changes will have direct effect in Northern Ireland.
