Directive establishing a single European railway area (recast)

Scope

Recast of the first railway package establishing the single European railway area (SERA), setting rules on infrastructure management and governance, licensing of railway undertakings, track access charging, capacity allocation and independent regulatory bodies. It is the core market-access framework for infrastructure managers, railway undertakings and rail regulators in the EU, amended notably by Directive (EU) 2016/2370 under the Fourth Railway Package market pillar.

Directive 2012/34/EU, the recast of the first railway package, establishes the single European railway area (SERA), setting the legal framework within which infrastructure managers and railway undertakings across the EU operate. It covers the independence and governance of infrastructure management, the licensing conditions railway undertakings must satisfy to provide rail transport services, the calculation and non-discriminatory application of infrastructure and service-facility charges, and the allocation of network capacity between competing users. The Directive also requires each Member State to designate an independent regulatory body empowered to monitor market conditions, handle complaints and, where necessary, intervene to prevent discrimination or abuse of a dominant position. It was amended by Directive (EU) 2016/2370, the market-opening pillar of the Fourth Railway Package, which extended competitive tendering and open-access rights for domestic passenger services. As the market-access backbone of EU rail law, it is the reference framework infrastructure managers, railway undertakings and national regulators apply daily alongside the technical pillar formed by the Interoperability and Safety Directives.