Commission Regulation (EU) No 1300/2014 of 18 November 2014 on the technical specifications for interoperability relating to accessibility of the Union's rail system for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility Text with EEA relevance

Article 1

Subject matter

This Regulation establishes the technical specification for interoperability (TSI) relating to accessibility of the Union's rail system for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility, as set out in the Annex.

Article 2

Scope

Article 3

Conformity assessment

Article 4

Specific cases

By 1 July 2015, each Member State shall inform the other Member States and the Commission about:

(a) the technical rules referred to in paragraph 1;

(b) the conformity assessment and verification procedures to be carried out with a view to applying the national rules referred to in paragraph 1;

(c) the bodies designated in accordance with  Article 37 of Directive (EU) 2016/797 appointed to carry out the conformity assessment and verification procedures with respect to the specific cases set out in Section 7.3 of the Annex.

Article 5

Projects at an advanced stage of development

In accordance with  Article 7(2) of Directive (EU) 2016/797, each Member State shall communicate to the Commission, within one year of the entry into force of this Regulation, a list of projects being implemented within its territory and that are at an advanced stage of development.

Article 6

Innovative solutions

Article 7

Inventory of Assets

Each Member State shall ensure that an inventory of assets is established and implemented with a view to:

(a) identifying barriers to accessibility;

(b) providing information to users;

(c) monitoring and evaluating progress on accessibility.

The scope of these inventories of assets shall extend at least to:

(a) public areas of stations dedicated to the transport of passengers as defined in point 2.1.1 of the Annex;

(b) rolling stock as defined in point 2.1.2 of the Annex.

Article 7a

Collection, maintenance and exchange of accessibility data

Article 8

National Implementation Plans

The scope and speed of implementing national plans shall be decided by Member States.

Article 9

Advisory body

The advisory body shall be established no later than 1 February 2015, and shall consist of:

(a) Member States wishing to participate;

(b) representative bodies from the railway sector;

(c) representative bodies of users;

(d) the European Railway Agency.

The tasks of the advisory body shall include:

(a) monitoring the development of a minimum data structure for the inventory of assets,

(b) supporting Member States in the completion of their inventories of assets and implementation plans,

(c) assisting the Commission in monitoring implementation of the TSI,

(d) facilitating exchanges of best practices,

(e) assisting the Commission in identifying the common priorities and criteria for the implementation of the TSI as referred to in Article 8.

(f) where appropriate, making recommendations to the Commission, in particular for strengthening implementation of the TSI.

Article 10

Final provisions

Full compliance with the TSI is mandatory for projects which receive the Union financial support for the renewal or upgrading of existing rolling stock or parts thereof or for the renewal or upgrading of existing infrastructure, in particular a station or components thereof and platforms or components thereof.

Article 11

Repeal

Decision 2008/164/EC is repealed with effect from 1 January 2015.

It shall however continue to apply to:

(a) subsystems authorised in accordance with that Decision;

(b) projects for new, renewed or upgraded subsystems which, at the date of publication of this Regulation, are at an advanced stage of development or are the subject of an ongoing contract;

(c) projects for new rolling stock of an existing design, as referred to in point 7.1.2 of the Annex to this Regulation.

Article 12

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

It shall apply from 1 January 2015. However, an authorisation for placing in service may be granted in accordance with the TSI as set out in the Annex to this Regulation before 1 January 2015.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

ANNEX

1. INTRODUCTION

The objective of this TSI is to enhance the accessibility of rail transport to persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility.

1.1.   Technical scope

The technical scope of this TSI is defined in Article 2(1) of the Regulation.

1.2.   Geographical scope

The geographical scope of this TSI is defined in Article 2(2) of the Regulation.

2. SCOPE OF SUBSYSTEMS AND DEFINITIONS

2.1.   Scope of the subsystems

This TSI applies to all the public areas of stations dedicated to the transport of passengers that are controlled by the railway undertaking, infrastructure manager or station manager. This includes the provision of information, the purchase of a ticket and its validation if needed, and the possibility to wait for the train.

This TSI applies to rolling stock which is in the scope of the Annex to Regulation (EU) No 1302/2014 (LOC&PAS TSI) and which is intended to carry passengers.

This TSI does not apply to rolling stock intended for other purposes than the carriage of persons. Persons accompanying a freight train or riding on other rail vehicles than those intended for passengers shall be subject to conditions set up by the railway undertaking and published on its website.

This TSI applies to the procedures enabling a coherent operation of the infrastructure and rolling stock subsystems when passengers are persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility.

This TSI applies to visual and audible passenger information systems located in stations and in rolling stock.

2.2.   Definition of ‘person with disabilities and person with reduced mobility’

‘Person with disabilities and person with reduced mobility’ means any person who has a permanent or temporary physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairment which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective use of transport on an equal basis with other passengers or whose mobility when using transport is reduced due to age.

The transport of oversized items (for example: bicycles and bulky luggage) is not within the scope of this TSI.

2.3.   Other Definitions

Definitions related to rolling stock: refer to the LOC&PAS TSI point 2.2.

‘Interoperable wheelchair transportable by train’ An interoperable wheelchair transportable by train is a wheelchair the characteristics of which permit the full usage of all features of rolling stock designed for wheelchair users. The characteristics of an interoperable wheelchair transportable by train are within the limits specified in Appendix M.

Accessibility data consists of the information related to the accessibility of passenger railway stations that needs to be collected, maintained and exchanged, that is to say, of a description of the characteristics and equipment of the passenger railway stations. Where relevant that description is complemented by the information regarding the stations' state of conformity to this TSI.

An obstacle-free route is a link between two or more public areas dedicated to the transport of passengers such as specified in point 2.1.1. It can be navigated by all persons with disabilities and reduced mobility. In order to achieve this, the route can be divided to better meet the needs of all persons with disabilities and reduced mobility. The combination of all the parts of the obstacle free route constitutes the route accessible for all persons with disabilities and reduced mobility.

A step-free route is a division of an obstacle-free route that meets the needs of mobility impaired persons. Changes in level are avoided or, when they cannot be avoided, they are bridged via ramps or lifts.

‘Tactile signs’ and ‘tactile controls’ are signs or controls, which include raised pictograms, raised characters or Braille lettering.

The station manager is an organisational entity in a Member State, which has been made responsible for the management of a railway station and which may be the infrastructure manager.

Safety information is information that shall be given to passengers so that they know in advance how they have to behave in case of an emergency.

Safety instructions are the instructions that shall be given to passengers in case of an emergency so that they understand what to do.

A level access is an access from a platform to the doorway of a rolling stock for which it can be demonstrated that:

— The gap between the door sill of that doorway (or of the extended bridging plate of that doorway) and the platform does not exceed 75 mm measured horizontally and 50 mm measured vertically and

— The rolling stock has no internal step between the door sill and the vestibule.

3. ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS

The following tables indicate the essential requirements, as set out in Annex III to Directive (EU) 2016/797 of the European Parliament and of the Council (⁴), that are met by the specifications set out in Chapter 4 of this TSI for the scope of this TSI.

The essential requirements that are not listed in the table are not relevant within the scope of this TSI.

Infrastructure	Reference to Essential Requirement in Annex III to  Directive (EU) 2016/797
Element of the TSI Domain	Reference point of this Annex	Safety	Reliability and Availability	Health	Environ-mental protection	Technical compatibility	Accessibility (1)
Parking facilities for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility	4.2.1.1						2.1.2
Obstacle-free route	4.2.1.2	2.1.1					2.1.2
Doors and entrances	4.2.1.3	1.1.1 2.1.1					2.1.2
Floor surfaces	4.2.1.4	2.1.1					2.1.2
Highlighting of transparent obstacles	4.2.1.5	2.1.1					2.1.2
Toilets and baby-nappy changing facilities	4.2.1.6	1.1.5 2.1.1					2.1.2
Furniture and free-standing devices	4.2.1.7	2.1.1					2.1.2
Ticketing, information desks and customer assistance points	4.2.1.8	2.1.1	2.7.3			2.7.1	2.1.2 2.7.5
Lighting	4.2.1.9	2.1.1					2.1.2
Visual information: signposting, pictograms, printed or dynamic information	4.2.1.10					2.7.1	2.1.2 2.7.5
Spoken information	4.2.1.11	2.1.1	2.7.3			2.7.1	2.1.2 2.7.5
Platform width and edge of platform	4.2.1.12	2.1.1					2.1.2
End of platform	4.2.1.13	2.1.1					2.1.2
Boarding aids on platforms	4.2.1.14	1.1.1					2.1.2
Level track crossing at stations	4.2.1.15	2.1.1					2.1.2
(1) Essential Requirement from Commission Directive 2013/9/EU of 11 March 2013 amending Annex III to Directive 2008/57/EC (OJ L 68, 12.3.2013, p. 55).
Rolling Stock	Reference to Essential Requirement in Annex III of  Directive (EU) 2016/797
---	---	---	---	---	---	---	---
Element of the TSI Domain	Reference point of this Annex	Safety	Reliability and Availability	Health	Environ-mental protection	Technical compatibility	Accessibility
Seats	4.2.2.1			1.3.1			2.4.5
Wheelchair spaces	4.2.2.2	2.4.1					2.4.5
Doors	4.2.2.3	1.1.1 1.1.5 2.4.1	1.2				2.4.5
Lighting	4.2.2.4	2.4.1					2.4.5
Toilets	4.2.2.5	2.4.1					2.4.5
Clearways	4.2.2.6			1.3.1			2.4.5
Customer information	4.2.2.7	2.4.1	2.7.3			2.7.1	2.4.5 2.7.5
Height changes	4.2.2.8	1.1.5					2.4.5
Handrails	4.2.2.9	1.1.5					2.4.5
Wheelchair accessible sleeping accommodation	4.2.2.10	2.4.1					2.4.5
Step position for vehicle access and egress	4.2.2.11	1.1.1	2.4.2			1.5 2.4.3	2.4.5
Boarding aids	4.2.2.12	1.1.1				1.5 2.4.3	2.4.5

4. CHARACTERISATION OF THE SUBSYSTEMS

4.1.   Introduction

(1) The rail system of the Union, to which  Directive (EU) 2016/797 applies and of which the subsystems are parts, is an integrated system whose consistency shall be verified. This consistency shall be checked in particular with regard to the specifications of each subsystem, its interfaces vis-à-vis the system in which it is integrated as well as the operating and maintenance rules.

(2) The functional and technical specifications of the subsystems and their interfaces, described in points 4.2 and 4.3, do not impose the use of specific technologies or technical solutions, except where this is strictly necessary for the interoperability of the Union rail network. But innovative solutions for interoperability may require new specifications and/or new assessment methods. In order to allow technological innovation, these specifications and assessment methods shall be developed by the process described in article 6 of the Regulation.

(3) Taking account of all the applicable essential requirements, the basic parameters related to accessibility for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility are set out for the subsystems infrastructure and rolling stock in point 4.2 of this TSI.  The operational requirements and responsibilities are set out in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/773 (⁵) (OPE TSI) and in point 4.4 of this TSI.

4.2.   Functional and technical specifications

(1) In light of the essential requirements in Section 3, the functional and technical specifications of the infrastructure subsystem related to accessibility for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility are arranged as follows: — Parking facilities for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility — Obstacle-free routes — Doors and entrances — Floor surfaces — Highlighting of transparent obstacles — Toilets and baby nappy changing facilities — Furniture and free-standing devices — Ticketing, information desks and customer assistance points — Lighting — Visual information: signposting, pictograms, printed or dynamic information — Spoken information — Platform width and edges of platforms — End of platforms — Boarding aids stored on platforms — Level track crossings

(2) The basic parameters that are specified in points 4.2.1.1 — 4.2.1.15 apply to the scope of the infrastructure subsystem that is defined in point 2.1.1; they can be divided into two categories: — Those for which technical details need to be specified, such as the parameters relative to the platforms and how to reach the platforms. In this first case, the basic parameters are specifically described and the technical details to be satisfied in order to fulfil the requirement are detailed. — Those for which technical details are not necessary to be specified, such as the value of ramps or the characteristics of parking places. In this second case, the basic parameter is defined as a functional requirement that can be met by applying several technical solutions. The table 3 below indicates the category of each of the basic parameters. Table 3 Categories of basic parameters Basic Parameter Technical details provided Functional requirement only Parking facilities for persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility

Complete point 4.2.1.1 Obstacle-free route Location of the routes Width of the obstacle-free route Threshold Double handrails Type of lift Height of braille signs Detailed characteristics Doors and entrances 4.2.1.3(2): Door width 4.2.1.3(4): Height of door operating device 4.2.1.3(1) 4.2.1.3(3) Floor surfaces 4.2.1.4(2): Floor irregularities 4.2.1.4(1): Slip resistance Highlighting of transparent obstacles

Complete point 4.2.1.5 Toilets and baby nappy changing facilities

Complete point 4.2.1.6 Furniture and free-standing devices