Comments requested on amendments to rail transport regulation: Extension for rail wagon procurements 

The Ministry of Transport and Communications requests comments on a draft government proposal that would amend the regulation concerning rail transport. The legislative amendments would enhance the safety and security of urban rail transport and give an extension of time to the forest and chemicals industries for procuring rolling stock that meets the EU requirements. The deadline for submitting comments is 5 March 2025. 

The amendments would continue the derogation that allows to use international rolling stock for eastern Europe and Asia (OSJD/GOST) for transporting timber and chemicals within Finland. The derogation would continue until the end of 2028. The derogation has been applied since the start of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine in 2022 to ensure rail transports of timber and chemicals in Finland for the needs of industry.

In EU law, Finland has been granted a derogation to use OSJD/GOST rolling stock in international rail transport only. The procurement of rolling stock that meets the EU requirements for transporting timber and chemicals takes longer than expected, which is why the Government has decided to continue the derogation from 2026 until the end of 2028. The European Commission has also been informed of this two-year extension. 

EU law does not allow the use of such rolling stock for transports within Finland, but the Commission has understood the temporary need for this in Finland due to the shortage of rolling stock resulting from Russia’s war of aggression. The two-year extension for the use of this stock until 2028 is the longest extension possible. The Commission requires that, after this period, Finland will again comply with the requirements for rolling stock under the EU law. The companies must procure rolling stock that meets the EU requirements by the end of 2028 to ensure timber and chemicals transports.

Changes to regulation on urban rail transport to improve safety and security

The same government proposal would also develop the regulation concerning urban rail transport, i.e. metros and trams. In future, plans concerning the urban rail transport network and the related impact assessments would have to be submitted to the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom as early as possible. The aim is that safety and security perspectives would be taken into account in project planning as well as possible from the very beginning.

Changes to be made to the regulation on urban rail transport also include actions to improve the management of incidents and cyber security risks. The operators of urban rail transport would be required to include procedures for maintaining the qualifications of the drivers in their safety management systems and to have a monitoring system for the training of drivers. In addition, certain technical revisions would be made to the regulation.

What’s next?

The deadline for comments on the draft act is 5 March 2025. After the consultation round, public officials will continue to draft the government proposal.

All organisations and private individuals may submit comments online at www.lausuntopalvelu.fi.

Inquiries:

Risto Saari, Senior Ministerial Adviser, tel. +358 295 342 311, [email protected]