THE CONTRACTING PARTIES:

Having regard to the desire to promote the development of international transport in Europe and especially to facilitate the organisation and operation thereof,

Having regard to the desire to facilitate tourism and cultural exchange between the Contracting Parties,

Whereas:

The Agreement on the international carriage of passengers by road by means of occasional coach and bus services (ASOR), signed in Dublin on 26 May 1982 does not provide for any scope for the accession of new Parties.

The experience and the liberalisation achieved by this latter Agreement should be maintained.

It is desirable to provide for harmonised liberalisation of certain international occasional services by coach and bus and the transit operations thereof.

It is desirable to provide for certain harmonised rules of procedure for non-liberalised international occasional services, that are thus still subject to authorisation.

It is necessary to provide for a high degree of harmonisation of the technical conditions applying to buses and coaches carrying out international occasional services between Contracting Parties in order to improve road safety and protection of the environment.

It is necessary that Contracting Parties should apply uniform measures concerning the work of the crews of buses and coaches engaged in international road transport.

It is desirable to provide for harmonisation of the conditions for access to the occupation of road passenger transport operator.

The principle of non-discrimination on grounds of nationality or the place of establishment of the transport operator, and of the origin or destination of the bus or coach, should be considered to be a basic condition applying to the provision of international transport services.

It is necessary to provide for uniform models for transport documents such as the control document for liberalised occasional services and also the authorisation and the application form for non-liberalised services in order to facilitate and simplify inspection procedures.

It is necessary to provide for certain harmonised measures on the enforcement of the Agreement, especially as far as control procedures, penalties and mutual assistance are concerned.

It is appropriate to establish certain procedures for the management of the Agreement in order to ensure proper enforcement and to permit some technical adaptation of the Annexes.

The Agreement should be open for accession to future members of the European Conference of Ministers of Transport and to certain other European countries,

HAVE DECIDED to establish uniform rules for the international occasional carriage of passengers by coach and bus, and

HAVE AGREED AS FOLLOWS:

Section I

SCOPE AND DEFINITIONS

Article 1

Scope

1. This Agreement shall apply:

(a) to the international carriage of passengers, of any nationality, by road by means of occasional services:

- between the territories of two Contracting Parties, or starting and finishing on the territory of the same Contracting Party and, should the need arise during such services, in transit through the territory of another Contracting Party or through the territory of a non- Contracting State,

- carried out by transport operators for hire or reward established in a Contracting Party in accordance with its law and holding a licence to undertake carriage by means of international occasional services by coach and bus,

- using buses and coaches registered in the Contracting Party where the transport operator is established;

(b) to unladen journeys of the buses and coaches concerned with these services.

2. None of the provisions of this Agreement may be interpreted as providing the possibility of operating national occasional services in the territory of a Contracting Party by operators established in another Contracting Party.

3. The use of buses and coaches designed to carry passengers for the transport of goods for commercial purposes shall be excluded from the scope of this Agreement.

4. This Agreement does not concern own-account occasional services.

Article 2

Non-discrimination

Contracting Parties shall ensure that the principle of non-discrimination on the grounds of the nationality or the place of establishment of the transport operator, and of the origin or destination of the bus or coach, is applied, in particular with regard to fiscal provisions as established in section VI, as well as control and penalties as established in section IX.

Article 3

Definitions

For the purposes of this Agreement, the following definitions shall apply:

1. ‘buses and coaches’ are vehicles which, by virtue of their construction and their equipment, are suitable for carrying more than nine persons, including the driver, and are intended for that purpose;

2. ‘international occasional services’ are services between the territory of at least two Contracting Parties falling within neither the definition of regular services or special regular services nor the definition of a shuttle service. Such services may be operated with some degree of frequency without thereby ceasing to be occasional services;

3. ‘regular services’ are services which provide for the carriage of passengers according to a specified frequency and along specified routes, whereby passengers may be taken up or set down at predetermined stopping points. Regular services can be subject to the obligation to respect previously estab- lished timetables and tariffs;

4. ‘special regular services’ are services, by whomsoever organised, which provide for the carriage of specified categories of passengers to the exclusion of other passengers, in so far as such services are operated under the conditions specified in point 3. Special regular services shall include:

- the carriage of workers between home and work,

- the carriage of school pupils and students to and from the educational institution.

The fact that a special regular service may be varied according to the needs of users shall not affect its classification as a regular service;

5. 1. ‘shuttle services’ are services whereby, by means of repeated outward and return journeys, previously formed groups of passengers are carried from a single place of departure to a single destination. Each group, consisting of the passengers who made the outward journey, shall be carried back to the place of departure on a later journey by the same transport operator.

Place of departure and destination shall mean, respectively, the place where the journey begins and the place where the journey ends, together with, in each case, the surrounding localities within a radius of 50 km;

2. in the course of shuttle services, no passenger may be taken up or set down during the journey;

3. the first return journey and the last outward journey in a series of shuttles shall be made unladen;

4. however, the classification of a transport operation as a shuttle service shall not be affected by the fact that, with the agreement of the competent authorities in the Contracting Party or Parties concerned:

- passengers, notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph 1, make the return journey with another group or another transport operator,

- passengers, notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph 2, are taken up or set down along the way,

- the first outward journey and the last return journey of the series of shuttles are, notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph 3, made unladen;

6. ‘Contracting Parties’ are those signatories that have consented to be bound by this Agreement and for which this Agreement is in force.

This Agreement applies to those territories where the Treaty establishing the European Community is applied and under the conditions laid down in that Treaty and to BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, BULGARIA, CROATIA, THE CZECH REPUBLIC, ESTONIA, HUNGARY, LATVIA, LITHUANIA, MOLDOVA, POLAND, ROMANIA, SLOVAKIA, SLOVENIA and TURKEY, as far as they have concluded this Agreement;

7. ‘competent authorities’ are those authorities designated by the Member States of the Community and by the other Contracting Parties to carry out the tasks set out in sections V, VI, VII, VIII and IX of this Agreement;

8. ‘transit’ means the part of a transport operation through the territory of a Contracting Party without passengers being picked up or set down.

Section II

CONDITIONS APPLYING TO ROAD PASSENGER TRANSPORT OPERATORS

Article 4

1. Contracting Parties which have not yet done so shall apply provisions equivalent to those established by the European Community Directive referred to in Annex 1.

2. Concerning the condition on the appropriate financial standing referred to in Article 3(3) of such Directive, Contracting Parties may apply a minimum available capital and reserves lower than the amount established in point (c) of the said paragraph 3, up to the date of 1 January 2003 or even to 1 January 2005 under condition in the latter case that a corresponding declaration be made at the time of the ratification of the Agreement, without prejudice to the provisions included in the Europe Agreement establishing an association between the European Communities and their Member States and certain Contracting Parties to the present Agreement.

Section III

TECHNICAL CONDITIONS APPLYING TO VEHICLES

Article 5

The buses and coaches used to carry out the international occasional services covered by this Agreement shall comply with the technical standards laid down in Annex 2.

Section IV

ACCESS TO THE MARKET

Article 6

Liberalised occasional services

The following occasional services shall be exempted from authorisation on the territory of any Contracting Party other than that in which the transport operator is established:

1. closed-door tours, that is to say services whereby the same bus or coach is used to carry the same group of passengers throughout the journey and to bring them back to the place of departure. The place of departure is in the territory of the Contracting Party in which the transport operator is established;

2. services which make the outward journey laden and the return journey unladen. The place of departure is in the territory of the Contracting Party in which the transport operator is established;

3. services during which the outward journey is made unladen and all the passengers are taken up in the same place, provided that one of the following conditions is met:

(a) passengers constitute groups, on the territory of a non-Contracting Party or of a Contracting Party other than that in which the transport operator is established or that where the passengers are taken up, that have been formed under contracts of carriage made before their arrival in the territory of the latter Contracting Party. Passengers are carried on the territory of the Contracting Party in which the transport operator is established;

(b) passengers have been previously brought, by the same transport operator in the circumstances provided for under point 2, into the territory of the Contracting Party where they are taken up again and carried into the territory of the Contracting Party in which the transport operator is established;

(c) passengers have been invited to travel into the territory of another Contracting Party, the cost of transport being borne by the person issuing the invitation. Such passen- gers must constitute a homogeneous group, which has not been formed solely with a view to undertaking that particular journey and which is brought into the territory of the Contracting Party in which the transport operator is established.

The following shall also be exempted from authorisation:

4. transit operations through the territory of Contracting Parties in conjunction with occasional services that are exempted from authorisation;

5. unladen buses and coaches to be used exclusively for the replacement of a bus or a coach damaged or broken down, while performing an international service covered by this Agreement.

For services provided by transport operators established within the European Community, the points of departure and/or destination of the services can be in any Member State of the European Community, independently of the Member State in which the bus or coach is registered or the Member State in which the transport operator is established.

Article 7

Non-liberalised occasional services

1. Occasional services other than those referred to in Article 6 shall be subject to authorisation in accordance with Article 15.

2. For services provided by transport operators established within the European Community, the points of departure and/ or destination of the services can be in any Member State of the European Community, independently of the Member State in which the bus or coach is registered or the Member State in which the transport operator is established.

Section V

SOCIAL PROVISIONS

Article 8

The Contracting Parties to this Agreement which have not yet done so shall accede to the European Agreement concerning the work of crews of vehicles engaged in international road transport (AETR) of 1 July 1970, as subsequently amended, or shall apply Community Regulations (EEC) No 3820/85 and (EEC) No 3821/85 as in force at the entry into force of this Agreement.

Section VI

CUSTOM AND FISCAL PROVISIONS

Article 9

1. Buses and coaches that are engaged in transport operations in accordance with this Agreement shall be exempted from all vehicle taxes and charges levied on the circulation or possession of vehicles as well as from all special taxes or charges levied on transport operations in the territory of the other Contracting Parties.

Buses and coaches shall not be exempted from payment of taxes and charges on motor fuel, value added tax on transport services, road tolls and user charges levied on the use of infrastructure.

2. Contracting Parties shall ensure that tolls and any other form of user charges may not be imposed at the same time for the use of a single road section. However, Contracting Parties may also impose tolls on networks where user charges are levied, for the use of bridges, tunnels and mountain passes.

3. The fuel for buses and coaches, contained in the fuel tanks established by the manufacturer for this purpose, and in any case not more than 600 litres, as well as the lubricants contained in buses and coaches for the sole purpose of their operation, shall be exempted from import duties and any other taxes and payments imposed in other Contracting Parties.

4. The Joint Committee established in Article 23 will draft a list of the taxes concerning road transport of passengers by bus and coach levied in each Contracting Party. This list will indicate the taxes falling under the provisions of paragraph 1, first subparagraph, of this Article that can only be levied in the Contracting Party of registration of the vehicle. This list will also indicate the taxes falling under the provisions of paragraph 1, second subparagraph, of this Article that may be levied in Contracting Parties other than the Contracting Party of registration of the vehicle. Contracting Parties which replace any tax included in the lists referred to with another tax of the same or a different kind shall notify the Joint Committee in order to make the necessary amendments.

5. Spare parts and tools imported for the repair of a damaged bus or coach while performing an international road transport operation shall be exempted from customs duty and from all taxes and charges at the time of importation into the territory of the other Contracting Party under the conditions laid down in its provisions concerning temporary admission of such goods. The spare parts which are replaced should be reexported or destroyed under the control of the competent customs authority of the other Contracting Party.

Section VII

CONTROL DOCUMENTS FOR OCCASIONAL SERVICES EXEMPTED FROM AUTHORISATION

Article 10

The provision of services referred to in Article 6 shall be carried out under cover of a control document issued by the competent authorities or by any duly authorised agency of the Contracting Party in which the transport operator is established.

Article 11

1. The control document shall consist of detachable passenger waybills in duplicate in books of 25. The control document shall conform to the model shown in Annex 3 to this Agreement.

2. Each book and its component passenger waybills shall bear a number. The passenger waybills shall also be numbered consecutively, running from 1 to 25.

3. The wording on the cover of the book and that on the passenger waybills shall be printed in the official language or several official languages of the Contracting Party in which the transport operator is established.

Article 12

1. The book referred to in Article 11 shall be made out in the name of the transport operator; it shall not be transferable.

2. The top copy of the passenger waybill shall be kept on the bus or coach throughout the journey to which it refers.

3. The transport operator shall be responsible for seeing that passenger waybills are duly and correctly completed.

Article 13

1. The passenger waybill shall be completed in duplicate by the transport operator for each journey before the start of the journey.

2. For the purpose of providing the names of passengers, the transport operator may use a previously completed list on a separate sheet, which shall be annexed to the passenger waybill. The transport operator's stamp or, where appropriate, the transport operator's signature or that of the driver of the bus or coach shall be placed both on the list and on the passenger waybill.

3. For the services involving an outward unladen journey referred to in Article 6(3), the list of passengers may be completed as provided for in paragraph 2 at the time when the passengers are taken up.

Article 14

The competent authorities of two or more Contracting Parties may agree that the list of passengers need not be drawn up. In that case, the number of passengers must be shown on the control document.

The Joint Committee established in Article 23 shall be informed of these agreements.

Section VIII

AUTHORISATION FOR NON-LIBERALISED OCCASIONAL SERVICES

Article 15

1. An authorisation for each occasional service which has not been liberalised under the provisions of Article 6 shall be issued, in mutual agreement by the competent authorities of the Contracting Parties where passengers are picked up or set down as well as by the competent authorities of the Contracting Parties crossed in transit. When the point of departure or destination is situated in a Member State of the European Community, the transit through other Member States of the Community will not be subject to authorisation.

2. The authorisation shall conform to the model laid down in Annex 5.

Article 16

Application for authorisation

1. The application for authorisation shall be submitted by the transport operator to the competent authorities of the Contracting Party on whose territory the point of departure is situated.

Applications shall conform to the model laid down in Annex 4.

2. Transport operators shall fill in the application form and attach evidence that the applicant is licensed to perform carriage by means of international occasional services by coach and bus referred to in Article 1(1)(a), second indent.

3. The competent authorities of the Contracting Party in whose territory the place of departure is situated shall examine the application for authorisation of the service concerned and, in the case of its approval, shall forward it to the competent authorities of the Contracting Party(ies) of destination as well as the competent authorities of the Contracting Parties in transit.

4. As a derogation from Article 15(1), Contracting Parties whose territories are crossed in transit may decide that their agreement is no longer necessary for services envisaged in this section. In this case, the Joint Committee established in Article 23 shall be informed of this decision.

5. The competent authorities of the Contracting Party(ies) whose agreement has been requested shall issue the authorisation within one month, without discrimination as to the nationality or place of establishment of the transport operator. If these authorities do not agree on the terms of the authorisation they shall inform the competent authorities of the Contracting Party(ies) concerned of the relevant reasons.

Article 17

The competent authorities of two or more Contracting Parties may agree to simplify the authorisation procedure, the model of application for authorisation and the model of authorisation for the occasional services carried out between these Contracting Parties. The Joint Committee established in Article 23 shall be informed of these agreements.

Section IX

CONTROLS, PENALTIES AND MUTUAL ASSISTANCE

Article 18

The control documents referred to in Article 10 and the authorisations referred to in Article 15 shall be carried on the bus or coach and shall be presented at the request of any authorised inspecting officer.

Article 19

The competent authorities in the Contracting Parties shall ensure that transport operators comply with the provisions of this Agreement.

Article 20

A certified true copy of the licence to perform carriage by means of international occasional services by bus and coach referred to in Article 1(1)(a), second indent, shall be kept on the bus or coach and shall be presented at the request of any authorised inspecting officer.

The Joint Committee established in Article 23 shall be informed about the models of such a document issued by the competent authorities of the Contracting Parties.

Article 21

The competent authorities of the Contracting Parties shall lay down a system of penalties for breaching this Agreement. The penalties thus provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.

Article 22

1. Where serious or repeated infringements of regulations concerning road transport, especially those concerning driving and resting time and road safety, have been committed by non-resident transport operators and might lead to withdrawal of the licence to practise as a road passenger transport operator, the competent authorities of the Contracting Party concerned shall provide the competent authorities of the Contracting Party in which such a transport operator is established with all of the information in their possession concerning those infringements and the penalties that they have imposed.

2. The competent authorities of the Contracting Party in whose territory the serious or repeated infringement of regulations concerning road transport, especially those concerning driving and resting time and road safety have occurred, may temporarily deny access for the transport operator concerned to the territory of this contracting party.

As far as the European Community is concerned, the competent authority of a Member State may only temporarily deny access to the territory of that Member State. Competent authorities of the Contracting Party of establishment of the transport operator and the Joint Committee established in Article 23 shall be informed of such measures.

3. Where serious or repeated infringements of regulations concerning road transport, especially those concerning driving and resting time and road safety, have been committed by a transport operator, the competent authorities of the Contracting Parties where the transport operator is established shall take the appropriate measures to avoid repetition of those infringements; these measures may include the suspension or the withdrawal of the licence to practise as a road passenger transport operator. The Joint Committee established in Article 23 shall be informed of such measures.

4. Contracting Parties shall guarantee the right of the transport operator to appeal against the sanctions imposed.

Section X

THE JOINT COMMITTEE

Article 23

1. In order to facilitate the management of this Agreement, a Joint Committee is hereby established. This Committee shall be made up of representatives of the Contracting Parties.

2. The Joint Committee shall meet for the first time within six months of the entry into force of this Agreement.

3. The Joint Committee shall establish its own Rules of Procedure.

4. The Joint Committee shall meet at the request of at least one Contracting Party.

5. The Joint Committee may adopt decisions only when two thirds of the Contracting Parties, including the European Community, are represented in the Joint Committee meetings.

6. In so far as the Joint Committee is required to take decisions, unanimity of the Contracting Parties represented shall be required. In the event that unanimity cannot be achieved, the competent authorities concerned shall, following a request by one or more of the Contracting Parties concerned, meet for consultation within a period of six weeks.

Article 24

1. The Joint Committee shall ensure proper implementation of this Agreement. The Committee will be informed of any measure adopted or to be adopted in order to implement the provisions of this Agreement.

2. The Joint Committee shall in particular:

(a) on the basis of the information provided by the Contracting Parties, draw up a list of competent authorities of the Contracting Parties responsible for the tasks referred to in sections V, VI VII, VIII and IX of this Agreement;

(b) amend or adapt the control documents and other models of documents established in the Annexes to this Agreement;

(c) amend or adapt the Annexes concerning the technical standards applying to buses and coaches, as well as Annex 1 regarding the conditions applying to road passenger trans- port operators referred to in Article 4, in order to incorporate future measures taken within the European Community;

(d) on the basis of the information provided by the Contracting parties, draw up a list, for information, of all customs duties, taxes and charges referred to in Article 9(4) and (5);

(e) amend or adapt the requirements concerning the social provisions referred to in Article 8 in order to incorporate future measures taken within the European Community;

(f) resolve any dispute which may arise over the implementation and interpretation of this Agreement;

(g) recommend further steps towards the liberalisation of those occasional services still subject to authorisation.

3. The Contracting Parties shall take the measures necessary to enforce any decisions adopted by the Joint Committee in accordance, where necessary, with their own internal procedures.

4. If an agreement cannot be reached to settle a dispute in accordance with paragraph 2(f) of this Article, the Contracting Parties concerned may submit the case to an arbitration panel. Each Contracting Party concerned shall appoint an arbitrator. The Joint Committee itself shall also appoint an arbitrator.

The arbitrators' decisions shall be taken by majority vote.

Contracting Parties involved in the dispute shall take the steps required to implement the arbitrators' decisions.

Section XI

GENERAL AND FINAL PROVISIONS

Article 25

Bilateral agreements

1. The provisions of this Agreement shall replace those relevant provisions of the agreements concluded between Contracting Parties. As far as the European Community is concerned, this provision applies to agreements concluded between any Member State and a Contracting Party.

2. Contracting Parties other than the European Community may agree not to apply Article 5 of and Annex 2 to this Agreement and apply other technical standards to buses and coaches executing occasional services between these Contracting Parties including transit of their territories.

3. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 6 of Annex 2, the provisions of this Agreement shall replace those relevant provisions of the agreements concluded between the Member States of the European Community and other Contracting Parties.

However, the provisions granting an exemption from authorisation contained in existing bilateral agreements between Member States of the European Community and other Contracting Parties for occasional services mentioned in Article 7 may be maintained and renewed. In that case, the Contracting Parties concerned will immediately inform the Joint Committee established in Article 23.

Article 26

Signature

This Agreement shall be open for signature at Brussels from 14 April 2000 to 31 December 2000, at the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union which shall act as the depository of the Agreement.

Article 27

Ratification or approval and depository of the Agreement

This Agreement shall be approved or ratified by the signatories in accordance with their own procedures. The instruments of approval or ratification shall be deposited by Contracting Parties with the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, which shall notify all other signatories.

Article 28

Entry into force

1. This Agreement shall enter into force for the Contracting Parties that have approved or ratified it, when four Contracting Parties including the European Community have approved or ratified it, on the first day of the third month following the date on which the fourth instrument of approval or ratification is deposited, or even on the first day of the sixth month, under condition in the latter case that a corresponding declaration be made at the time of the ratification of the Agreement.

2. This Agreement shall enter into force, for each Contracting Party that approves or ratifies it after the entry into force provided for in paragraph 1, on the first day of the third month following the date on which the Contracting Party concerned has deposited its instrument of approval or ratification.

Article 29

Duration of the Agreement - Evaluation of the functioning of the Agreement

1. This Agreement shall be concluded for a period of five years, dating from its entry into force.

2. The duration of this Agreement shall be automatically extended for successive periods of five years among those Contracting Parties who do not express their wish not to do so. In the latter case the Contracting Party concerned shall notify the depository of its intention according to Article 31.

3. Before the end of each period of five years, the Joint Committee shall evaluate the functioning of this Agreement.

Article 30

Accession

1. After its entry into force, this Agreement shall be open to accession by countries which are full members of the European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT). In the event of the accession to this Agreement by countries that are members of the Agreement on the European Economic Area, this Agrement shall not apply among the Contracting Parties of the Agreement on the European Economic Area.

2. This Agreement shall also be open to accession by the Republic of San Marino, the Principality of Andorra and the Principality of Monaco.

3. For each State acceding to this Agreement after the entry into force provided for in Article 28, the Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the third month after deposit by such State of its instrument of accession.

4. Each State acceding to this Agreement after the entry into force provided for in Article 28 may be granted a period of three years maximum for the adoption of provisions equivalent to the directive(s) referred to in Annex 1. The Joint Committee shall be informed of any such measures adopted.

Article 31

Denunciation

Each Contracting Party may, for its part, denounce this Agreement with one year's notice by simultaneous notification of the other Contracting Parties through the Depository of the Agreement.

The Joint Committee shall also be informed of the reasons of the denunciation. However, the Agreement cannot be denounced during the first four years which follow its entry into force, as provided for under Article 28.

If the Agreement is denounced by one or more Contracting Parties, and the number of Contracting Parties falls below the number agreed for the original entry into force as provided for in Article 28, the Agreement shall remain in force unless the Joint Committee, comprising the remaining Contracting Parties, decides otherwise.

Article 32

Termination

A Contracting Party that has acceded to the European Union shall cease to be treated as a Contracting Party from the date of such accession.

Article 33

Annexes

Annexes to this Agreement shall constitute an integral part thereto.

Article 34

Languages

This Agreement, drawn up in the English, French and German languages, these texts being authentic, shall be deposited in the archives of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, which shall transmit a certified true copy to each of the Contracting Parties.

Each Contracting Party shall ensure a proper translation of this Agreement in its official language or official languages. A copy of this translation shall be deposited in the archives of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union.

A copy of all translations of the Agreement and the Annexes will be sent by the Depository to all Contracting Parties.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned plenipotentiaries have signed this Agreement.

Open for signature in Brussels between 14 April 2000 and 30 June 2001 Ouvert à la signature à Bruxelles entre le 14 avril 2000 et le 30 juin 2001

Liegt zwischen dem 14. April 2000 und 30. Juni 2001 in Brüssel zur Unterzeichnung auf

For the European Community
Pour la Communauté européenne
Für die Europäische
Gemeinschaft

22-06-2001

For Bosnia-Herzegovina
Pour la Bosnie-Herzégovine
Für Bosnien-Herzegowina

14-06-2001

For the Republic of Bulgaria
Pour la République de Bulgarie
Für die Republik Bulgarien

11-12-2000

For the Republic of Croatia
Pour la République de Croatie
Für die Republik Kroatien

27-04-2001

For the Czech Republic
Pour la République tchèque
Für die Tschechische Republik

26-06-2001

For the Republic of Estonia
Pour la République d'Estonie
Für die Republik Estland

For the Republic of Hungary
Pour la République de Hongrie
Für die Republik Ungarn

27-06-2001

For the Republic of Latvia
Pour la République de Lettonie
Für die Republik Lettland

15-12-2000

For the Republic of Lithuania
Pour la République de Lituanie
Für die Republik Litauen

29-09-2000

For the Republic of Moldova
Pour la République de Moldova
Für die Republik Moldau

28-09-2000

For the Republic of Poland
Pour la République de Pologne
Für die Republik Polen

11-12-2000

For Romania
Pour la Roumanie
Für Rumänien

02-10-2000

For the Slovak Republic
Pour la République slovaque
Für die Slowakische Republik

14-12-2000

For the Republic of Slovenia
Pour la République de Slovénie
Für die Republik Slowenien

22-12-2000

For the Republic of Turkey
Pour la République de Turquie
Für die Republik Türkei

11-06-2001

DECISION No 1/2011 OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE ESTABLISHED UNDER THE INTERBUS AGREEMENT ON THE INTERNATIONAL OCCASIONAL CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS BY COACH AND BUS

of 11 November 2011

adopting its rules of procedure and adapting Annex 1 to the Agreement regarding the conditions applying to road passenger transport operators, Annex 2 to the Agreement concerning the technical standards applying to buses and coaches and the requirements concerning the social provisions referred to in Article 8 of the Agreement

(2012/25/EU)

THE JOINT COMMITTEE,

Having regard to the Interbus Agreement on the international occasional carriage of passengers by coach and bus (1), and in particular Articles 23 and 24 thereof,

Whereas:

HAS DECIDED AS FOLLOWS:

Article 1

The rules of procedure of the Joint Committee as set out in Annex I to this Decision are hereby adopted.

Article 2

Annex 1 to the Agreement regarding the conditions applying to road passenger transport operators, Annex 2 to the Agreement concerning the technical standards applying to buses and coaches and the requirements concerning the social provisions referred to in Article 8 of the Agreement are hereby adapted as set out in Annex II to this Decision.

Done at Brussels, 11 November 2011.

The Chairman

Sz. SCHMIDT

The Secretary

G. PATRIS

________
(1) OJ L 321, 26.11.2002, p. 13.

Annex I

RULES OF PROCEDURE OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE ESTABLISHED UNDER THE INTERBUS AGREEMENT ON THE INTERNATIONAL OCCASIONAL CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS BY COACH AND BUS

Article 1

Name of Joint Committee

The Joint Committee established under Article 23 of the Interbus Agreement on the international occasional carriage of passengers by coach and bus shall hereinafter be referred to as ‘the Committee’.

Article 2

Chairmanship

1. The Committee shall be chaired by a representative of the European Commission (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Commission’), on behalf of the European Union.

2. The head of the Union delegation, or where necessary his deputy, shall carry out the duties of the Chairman of the Committee.

3. The Chairman shall direct the work of the Committee.

Article 3

Delegations

1. The parties for which the Agreement has entered into force (hereinafter referred to as ‘the parties’) shall appoint their representatives on the Committee. The Union delegation shall be made up of representatives of the Commission, assisted by representatives of the Member States.

2. Each party shall appoint the head and, where necessary, deputy head of its delegation.

3. Each party may appoint new representatives on the Committee. The Secretary of the Committee shall be informed forthwith in writing of any such changes.

4. Representatives of the General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union may take part as observers in the meetings of the Committee. The Chairman, with the agreement of the other heads of delegation, may invite persons who are not members of delegations to attend a meeting of the Committee in order to provide information on specific subjects.

5. At least 1 week before the meeting, the parties shall notify the Secretary of the Committee of the composition of their delegation.

Article 4

Secretariat

1. A representative of the Commission shall provide the secretariat for the Committee. The Secretary shall be appointed by the Chairman of the Committee and shall carry out his duties until a new Secretary is appointed. The Chairman shall notify the name and details of the Secretary to the other parties.

2. The Secretary shall be responsible for communication between the delegations, including the transmission of documents, and shall supervise secretarial duties.

Article 5

Meetings of the Committee

1. The Committee shall meet at the request of at least one party. It shall be convened by the Chairman.

2. The Chairman shall send the notice of the meeting, together with the draft agenda and the meeting documents, to the heads of the other delegations at least 15 working days before the beginning of the meeting.

3. A party may request the Chairman to shorten the periods of notice referred to in paragraph 2 to take account of the urgency of a particular matter.

4. Unless otherwise decided by the heads of delegations, the meetings of the Committee shall not be public.

5. The Committee shall meet in Brussels, unless the parties agree to meet elsewhere.

Article 6

Agenda

1. The Chairman, assisted by the Secretary, shall draw up the draft agenda for each meeting and shall fix the date and venue of the meeting after consulting the heads of the other delegations. The Chairman shall send the provisional agenda to the other heads of delegation at least 15 working days before the beginning of the meeting. The agenda shall be accompanied by all the necessary working documents.

2. The period of notice laid down in paragraph 1 shall not apply to urgent meetings convened in accordance with Article 5(3).

3. Each party may propose one or more items to be added to the provisional agenda at the latest 24 hours before the beginning of the meeting. Requests to have items added to the agenda shall be sent in writing to the Chairman, indicating the reason therefore.

4. At the beginning of the meeting, the Committee shall adopt the agenda. The Committee may decide to add to the agenda an item which is not contained in the provisional agenda.

Article 7

Adoption of acts

1. The decisions of the Committee shall be adopted by unanimous vote of the parties represented, in accordance with Article 23(5) and (6) of the Agreement. The recommendations, and in particular those referred to in Article 24(2)(g) of the Agreement, shall be taken by consensus between the delegations of the parties represented. The decisions and recommendations shall bear the title ‘Decision’ or ‘Recommendation’ followed by a serial number, the date of their adoption and an indication of their content.

2. The decisions and recommendations of the Committee shall bear the signature of the Chairman and the Secretary. They shall be sent by the Secretary to the other heads of delegation.

3. Each party may decide to publish any act adopted by the Committee.

4. The acts of the Committee may be adopted by written procedure where this has been agreed by the heads of delegation. The Chairman shall submit the draft act to the other heads of delegation who shall indicate in reply whether or not they accept the draft, whether they propose amendments to the draft or whether they require more time to consider it. If the draft is adopted, the Chairman shall finalise the decision or recommendation in accordance with paragraphs 1 and 2.

5. The recommendations and decisions shall be drawn up in English, French and German, these texts being authentic. Each party shall be responsible for the correct translation of recommendations and decisions into its official language or languages. Translation into other Union languages shall be carried out by the Commission.

Article 8

Minutes

1. The Secretary shall draw up, under the responsibility of the Chairman, draft minutes of each meeting of the Committee within 15 working days following the meeting.

2. The minutes shall, as a general rule, indicate in respect of each item on the agenda:

- details of the documents submitted to the Committee,

- statements which a party has asked to be recorded,

- the decisions taken, recommendations made and conclusions adopted.

3. The draft minutes shall be submitted to the Committee for approval in accordance with the written procedure referred to in Article 7(4). If this procedure is not completed, the minutes shall be adopted by the Committee at its next meeting.

4. Once adopted by the Committee, the minutes shall be signed by the Chairman and the Secretary and kept by the Secretary. A copy shall be sent by the Secretary to the other heads of delegation.

Article 9

Confidentiality

Notwithstanding the provision on the publication of acts laid down in Article 7(3), the deliberations of the meetings and the documents of the Committee shall be governed by professional secrecy.

Article 10

Expenses

1. Each party shall bear the expenses it incurs in taking part in the meetings of the Committee.

2. The Committee shall decide on the reimbursement of expenses connected with missions assigned to persons called in by the Chairman in accordance with Article 3(4).

Article 11

Correspondence

All correspondence with or from the Chairman of the Committee shall be sent to the Secretary of the Committee. The Secretary shall send a copy of all correspondence relating to the Agreement to all delegations.

Article 12

Languages

The languages used in meetings of the Committee and in documents shall be decided by the Committee. There shall be no obligation on the party hosting the meeting to provide interpretation for other languages.

Annex II

ADAPTATION OF ANNEX 1 TO THE AGREEMENT REGARDING THE CONDITIONS APPLYING TO ROAD PASSENGER TRANSPORT OPERATORS, OF ANNEX 2 TO THE AGREEMENT CONCERNING THE TECHNICAL STANDARDS APPLYING TO BUSES AND COACHES AND OF THE REQUIREMENTS CONCERNING THE SOCIAL PROVISIONS REFERRED TO IN ARTICLE 8 OF THE AGREEMENT(1)

1. Adaptation of Annex 1 to the Agreement regarding the conditions applying to road passenger transport operators

The following Union act is added to Annex 1 to the Agreement:

‘Regulation (EC) No 1071/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 October 2009 establishing common rules concerning the conditions to be complied with to pursue the occupation of road transport operator and repealing Council Directive 96/26/EC (OJ L 300, 14.11.2009, p. 51)’.

2. Adaptation of Annex 2 to the Agreement concerning the technical standards applying to buses and coaches

3. Adaptation of the requirements concerning the social provisions referred to in Article 8 of the Agreement

__________
(1) The updating of the acts takes account of the new measures adopted by the European Union up to 31 December 2009.
(2) The updating of the acts takes account of the new measures adopted by the European Union up to 31 December 2009.