Revision of Train Drivers’ Directive Essential to Growing International Rail Traffic
International railway transportation experiences significant operational barriers compared to road and aviation through stringent language requirements which hinder the development of international travel. Significant changes to existing requirements are needed to facilitate the growth of international rail transportation. ALLRAIL and ERFA believe English should be introduced as a common language for international traffic in the revision of the Directive, whilst also maintaining existing national language requirementsÂ
German Transport Minister Criticises That Train Drivers Have To Be Changed At Borders Because Of Different Languages, And That This Increases The Cost
After 70 years of the fragmented current system, just 4-5% of travellers crossing borders internally within the EU use passenger rail.
Transport Minister Dr Volker Wissing has recently identified major cost drivers that cause cross-border rail to be so much more expensive than flying. One of them is train drivers changing over at the internal EU borders, which would be avoided if a single language were adopted.