2004-03-29
The European Passengers Federation [EPF] at its recent annual conference in Leipzig, Germany, warmly welcomed the proposals from the European Commission to improve passengers' rights on international railway journeys.
"We are delighted that the European Commission has adopted most of the recommendations we made during the consultation process in 2002," said Trevor Garrod, Chairman of the European Passengers Federation.
Trevor Garrod continued, "We are particularly pleased that the new proposals, which are contained in the Commission's 3rd Railway package, acknowledge the importance of good information before, during and after train journeys. Good information is one of the keys to making rail an attractive option for people considering their travel plans and to reassuring passengers as their journeys progress."
Rufus Barnes, Director of the London Transport Users Committee and a member of the EPF Administrative Council added, "The proposed new Regulations would for the first time impose a legal requirement on railway companies running international services to make provision for people with mobility impairment. The new Regulations would also significantly improve the rights of all passengers travelling between Britain and the continent of Europe by Eurostar, by, for example, by introducing new higher levels of compensation when services go wrong."
The European Passengers Federation has been involved in detailed discussions for the past two years with both the European Commission and the Community of European Railways [CER] (the organisation representing train operating companies in much of Europe) to press for improved passengers rights on all rail services in Europe.
The provisions of the voluntary code proposed by CER falls well below EPF's aspirations and therefore EPF strongly supports the European Commission's proposals to introduce Regulations. These will bring rail passengers rights into line with those approved by the European Union for air passengers.