Plenary report, 6 May 2026
On the Council position at first reading with a view to the adoption of a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the use of railway infrastructure capacity in the single European railway area, amending Directive 2012/34/EU and repealing Regulation (EU) No 913/2010
Report A-10-2026-0126 · (16833/1/2025 – C100104/2026 – 2023/0271(COD))
Committee on Transport and Tourism · Rapporteur: Tilly Metz
- Voted on Tuesday, 19 May 2026 · See the decision →
- Where the law stands · dossier 2023/0271 →
AI:In short
Parliament approves the Council position on a regulation for railway infrastructure capacity use, aiming for more efficient rail use via harmonised capacity management, better allocation, and stronger cross-border cooperation. The regulation enhances ENIM's role in coordinating cross-border capacity and traffic, strengthens railway undertakings' role in capacity decisions, and introduces penalties for non-compliance with train path commitments.
Position. The Committee on Transport and Tourism recommends that Parliament approve the Council position at first reading without amendments.
Key points
- Approves the Council position at first reading, noting the act is adopted accordingly.
- The agreed text aims for more efficient use of rail infrastructure through harmonised capacity management, more efficient allocation processes, and strengthened cross-border cooperation.
- Enhances the role of the European Network of Infrastructure Managers (ENIM) to coordinate cross-border capacity and traffic.
- Reinforces the role of railway undertakings in capacity-related decision-making processes.
- Introduces penalties for railway undertakings and infrastructure managers for non-compliance with commitments regarding allocated train paths.
Who is affected
- Railway undertakings and infrastructure managers face penalties for non-compliance with train path commitments.
- European Network of Infrastructure Managers (ENIM) gains a stronger coordination role.
Legal basis. Article 294(7) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union
Written by AI from the full text · every figure comes from the text · ¶ opens the paragraph · 4 Sept 2026 · Report a problem
Full text
Draft european parliament legislative resolution 16 paragraphs
(16833/1/2025 – C100104/2026 – 2023/0271(COD))
(Ordinary legislative procedure: second reading)
The European Parliament,
–having regard to the Council position at first reading (16833/1/2025 – C100104/2026),
–having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee of 25 October 2023,
–having regard to the opinion of the Committee of the Regions of 1 February 2024,
–having regard to its position at first reading on the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council (COM(2023)0443),
–having regard to Article 294(7) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,
–having regard to the provisional agreement approved by the committee responsible under Rule 75(4) of its Rules of Procedure,
–having regard to Rule 68 of its Rules of Procedure,
–having regard to the recommendation for second reading of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A10-0126/2026),
1.Approves the Council position at first reading;
2.Notes that the act is adopted in accordance with the Council position;
3.Instructs its President to sign the act with the President of the Council, in accordance with Article 297(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union;
4.Instructs its Secretary-General to sign the act, once it has been verified that all the procedures have been duly completed, and, in agreement with the Secretary-General of the Council, to arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;
5.Instructs its President to forward its position to the Council, the Commission and the national parliaments.
Short justification 1 paragraph
The Council position at first reading reflects the agreement reached between Parliament and the Council in interinstitutional negotiations at early second-reading stage. The agreed text has been the result of interinstitutional negotiations where the co-legislators have reached a compromise text aims to contribute to a more efficient use of Europe’s rail infrastructure through harmonisation of capacity management, more efficient allocation processes, and a strengthened cross-border cooperation. The agreement also foresees an enhanced role for European Network of Infrastructure Managers (ENIM) to coordinate cross-border capacity and traffic, while reinforcing the role of railway undertakings in capacity-related decision-making processes. To achieve a maximum utilisation of the available capacity on railway networks, penalties are introduced for railway undertakings and infrastructure managers in case of non-compliance with commitments with respect to allocated train paths.
Annex: declaration of input 1 paragraph
The rapporteur declares under her exclusive responsibility that she did not include in her report input from interest representatives falling within the scope of the Interinstitutional Agreement on a mandatory transparency register, or from representatives of public authorities of third countries, including their diplomatic missions and embassies, to be listed in this Annex pursuant to Article 8 of Annex I to the Rules of Procedure.
Procedure pages
How the committees handled the text, and how their members voted on it.
Procedure – committee responsible 1 paragraph
| Title | Use of railway infrastructure capacity in the single European railway area, amending Directive 2012/34/EU and repealing Regulation (EU) No 913/2010 | ||
| References | 16833/1/2025 – C10-0104/2026 – 2023/0271(COD) | ||
| Date of Parliament’s first reading – P number | 12.3.2024 T9-0127/2024 | ||
| Draft act considered at first reading | COM(2023)0443 - C9-0304/2023 | ||
| Receipt of Council position at first reading announced in plenary | 30.4.2026 | ||
| Committee(s) responsible Date announced in plenary | TRAN 30.4.2026 | ||
| Rapporteurs Date appointed | Tilly Metz 3.9.2024 | ||
| Discussed in committee | 18.3.2025 | 24.6.2025 | 2.12.2025 |
| Date adopted | 5.5.2026 | ||
| Result of final vote | +: –: 0: | 34 8 0 | |
| Date tabled | 6.5.2026 |
Final vote by roll call by the committee responsible 3 paragraphs
34 · For
- ECR
- Carlo Fidanza
- No group
- Luis-Vicențiu Lazarus
- EPP
- Nina Carberry, Jens Gieseke, Esther Herranz García, Sérgio Humberto, Dariusz Joński, Martine Kemp, Willemien Koning, Elżbieta Katarzyna Łukacijewska, Alexandra Mehnert, Andrey Novakov, Tomas Tobé, Elissavet Vozemberg-Vrionidi
- Patriots
- Fabrice Leggeri, Philippe Olivier
- Renew
- Benoit Cassart, Asger Christensen, Valérie Devaux, Morten Løkkegaard, Jan-Christoph Oetjen
- S&D
- Daniel Attard, Katarina Barley, Annalisa Corrado, Vivien Costanzo, Johan Danielsson, François Kalfon, Ştefan Muşoiu, Matteo Ricci, Andreas Schieder
- The Left
- Merja Kyllönen
- Greens
- Tilly Metz, Lena Schilling, Kai Tegethoff
8 · Against
- ECR
- Maciej Wąsik, Kosma Złotowski
- ESN
- Milan Mazurek, Volker Schnurrbusch, Stanislav Stoyanov
- Patriots
- Rachel Blom, Roman Haider, Sebastian Kruis
0 · Abstained