29.11.2011   

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 314/36

(1)

To achieve an appropriate and comparable level of quality of training and examinations of train drivers and train candidate drivers with a view to their certification in all Member States, it is necessary to establish common criteria at Union level in regard to both the procedures for recognition of training centres and for examiners of train drivers.

(2)

Training and examinations should be performed in an appropriate manner and at a reasonable and comparable quality level in all Member States, to enable mutual acceptance of examinations.

(3)

Training centres should be competent in regard to the training they carry out. In particular the training centres should have technical and operational competence and suitability to organise training courses and should be adequately staffed and equipped.

(4)

Particular provisions should be laid down for training centres that belong to railway undertakings or infrastructure managers applying for safety certificates or safety authorisations. In order to reduce the administrative burden, a Member State should be enabled to provide the possibility to combine the recognition of such training centres with the process of granting safety certificates or safety authorisations.

(5)

Examiners of train drivers should be skilled and competent in regard to the subject matter of examinations they want to conduct. Requirements for the competence of an examiner should refer to aspects such as examination methods, skills and pedagogical aptitude. The competent authority should check on an individual basis whether the competence of a person or entity applying for recognition as an examiner of train drivers is appropriate for the purpose of performing examinations in the respective areas of competences.

(6)

Examiners of train drivers should perform examinations in an independent and impartial manner. To that end, the persons or entities applying for the recognition procedure should prove to the competent authority that they respect those requirements.

(7)

The measures provided for in this Decision are in accordance with the opinion of the Committee referred to in Article 32 of Directive 2007/59/EC,

(a)

training centres providing training courses for train drivers and train candidate drivers on training tasks specified in Article 23 of Directive 2007/59/EC;

(b)

the examiners of train drivers authorised to check the competence of candidate train drivers or train drivers to be certified in accordance with Article 25 of Directive 2007/59/EC.

(a)

‘applicant’ means an entity or a single person having established a company that applies for recognition to provide training courses relating to training tasks referred to in Article 23(5) and (6) of Directive 2007/59/EC, including a single person applying for recognition as examiner referred to in Article 25(1) and (2) of Directive 2007/59/EC;

(b)

‘trainer’ means a person with relevant skills and competence to prepare, organise and conduct training courses;

(c)

‘examiner’ means a person having relevant skills and competence, recognised to conduct and score examinations for the purposes of Directive 2007/59/EC;

(d)

‘examination’ means a process to check a train driver’s or candidate train driver’s competence in accordance with Directive 2007/59/EC by one or more means such as written, oral and practical;

(e)

‘examination centre’ means an entity established to provide examinations for train drivers in accordance with Article 25 of Directive 2007/59/EC;

(f)

‘recognition’ means a formal statement on the competence of a person or an entity to perform training tasks or examinations, issued by an authority appointed for this purpose by the Member State;

(g)

‘competent authority’ means the competent authority as defined in Article 3 of Directive 2007/59/EC or any other body appointed by the Member State or entrusted with the task of recognition of training centres and of examiners by the competent authority through delegation.

(a)

have an effective management structure which ensures that trainers have adequate qualifications and experience to provide training according to the requirements set out in Directive 2007/59/EC;

(b)

have the necessary staff, facilities, equipment and accommodation appropriate for the training offered and the estimated number of trainees;

(c)

ensure that practical training is performed by trainers who are holders of both a valid train driver licence and a valid certificate covering the subject of training or a similar type of line/rolling stock, and who have professional practice in driving of minimum 3 years’ duration. When the trainer does not hold a valid certificate for the relevant infrastructure/rolling stock, a driver holding the certificate for that infrastructure/rolling stock shall be present to the training, in accordance with Article 4(2)(e) of Directive 2007/59/EC;

(d)

provide the methodology they intend to use to ensure the content, organisation and duration of training courses, training plans and competence schemes;

(e)

provide systems to record the training activities including information on participants, trainers and the number and purpose of the courses;

(f)

have a quality management system or equivalent procedures in place to monitor compliance with, and the adequacy of, the systems and procedures which ensure that the training provided satisfy the requirements set out in Directive 2007/59/EC;

(g)

provide competence management, ongoing training and measures to keep professional skills updated for trainers;

(h)

demonstrate procedures to keep training methods, tools and equipments updated, including training literature, training software, documents provided by the infrastructure manager such as rulebooks on operational rules, signals or safety systems.

(a)

they shall be competent in listening and spoken interaction at minimum level B2 of the European Framework for Language Competence (EFLC) established by the Council of Europe (3), in the language of examination;

(b)

they shall have the skills and the pedagogical aptitude required for the purpose of conducting examinations, and have thorough knowledge of the relevant examination methods and examination documents;

(c)

they shall demonstrate how they will keep their professional competences regarding the subjects they examine updated;

(d)

they shall be familiar with the certification scheme for train drivers.

(a)

in case of examinations conducted by two or more persons, at least the person who is leading the examination shall be a recognised examiner in accordance with the provisions of this Decision;

(b)

where the examination concerns the practical part of train driving competences, the examiner shall be licensed as train driver and hold a complementary certificate authorising the use of infrastructure and the driving of rolling stock that is subject to the examination, or a similar type of line/rolling stock; when the examiner does not hold a valid certificate for the infrastructure/rolling stock of the examination, a driver holding the certificate for that infrastructure/rolling stock shall be present to the examination in accordance with Article 4(2)(e) of Directive 2007/59/EC;

(c)

examinations shall be performed in a transparent manner and shall have adequate duration in order to prove with sufficient documented evidence that all the relevant subjects of the Annexes to Directive 2007/59/EC are covered;

(d)

in cases where the examiner participating to the examination provided the training on the subject of examination to the train driver or candidate train driver, a second examiner, who was not involved in preparation training, will conduct the examination;

(e)

an examination shall be prepared with particular care in regard to the confidentiality of the questions foreseen during the examination.

(a)

the railway undertaking or infrastructure manager has selected the examiner within the framework of a safety certificate or safety authorisation issued in accordance with Directive 2004/49/EC and within the limits of the scope issued by the competent authority and until the expiry of this safety certificate or safety authorisation;

(b)

the railway undertaking or infrastructure manager checks the fulfilment of the requirements laid down in this Decision in regard to examiners they have selected; if an examiner fails to meet a requirement, the railway undertaking or infrastructure manager shall take appropriate measures to achieve the fulfilment of the requirements for examiners.