In July 2010, the European Union published the latest amendments to Directive 68/1997 on Non-Road Mobile Machinery. These measures had been long-awaited by the railway industry and they guaranteed access on the railway market for all new players and especially small entrepreneurs, as well as a well-balanced competitive level on the Non-Road Mobile Machinery market. According to the British Freight Transport Association (FTA), the directive in its current form threatens the possibility to acquire a refurbished locomotive or to remotorise a locomotive that doesn’t comply with the new NRMM standards. Branded by some people as a powerful blow to the non-electric propulsion, the new directive risks attracting many waivers from its application. Many EU countries have applied regulations that enter into conflict with the provisions of the NRMM regulations.
In the UK, freight carriers seem to be most affected by this directive, which aims at harmonizing the legislation of EU countries on the emission standards and the homologation procedures for Non-Road Mobile Machinery, seeing as freight transport traction is mostly done through non-electric propulsion. Freight carriers claim that the new standards are too strict and that the national regulations applicable on the British network enter into conflict with the future European regulations.
Chris MacRae, FTA’s Rail Freight Policy Manager, said that the cooling systems which should be installed according to the future emission regulations don’t match most of the designs of the locomotives operated in the UK. The British state imposes strict weight restrictions so as not to affect the railway infrastructure. According to Chris MacRae, small and medium-size operators will no longer acquire second-hand or remotorised locomotives and this directive is only stimulating the acquisition of new products and, by extension, the acquisition of locomotives with no internal combustion engines. A conclusive example is UK’s Class 66 diesel locomotive, which is responsible for the traction of 95% of the country’s freight trains and whose propulsion system doesn’t comply with the standards stipulated in the NRMM directive.
Locomotives and railcars will now equate cranes and excavating machines
Having observed the impact that the implementation of the NRMM regulations will have on the railway sector, UNIFE has drawn up several recommendations, to help the railway industry not to be severely affected and to provide enough time to adapt to the new changes. UNIFE demands the extension of the application period for the new legislation on emission regulations, arguing that 3 years was not enough time for the manufacturers and operators to adapt their rolling stock in case of the diesel engines (between stage IIIA and IIB). Freight carriers also argue that there is no significant difference between the destinations of the mobile machinery included in the new regulations and that the railway sector has certain characteristics based on which the engines that ensure traction by rail cannot be placed in the same category as ski jets, cranes and other non-road mobile machinery and that the refurbishment of the railway traction installations is an aspect which requires separate attention, since it contributes to the overall performance of the railway system itself.
The stages stipulated in the NRMM regulations are similar to the EURO levels used in the road transport system. Stage IIIA covers the mobile machinery which use a traction power of 19-560 kW and entered into force on January 1, 2006; stage IIIB covers the mobile machinery which use a traction power of 37-560 kW and will enter into force on January 1, 2011; stage IV covers the mobile machinery which use a traction power of 56-560 kW and is scheduled to enter into force on January 1, 2014.
According to EC statistical data, the non-road mobile machinery are responsible for at least ¼ of the nitrogen oxide emissions and 1/3 of the PM 2.5 emissions (polluting particles smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter) which contribute to the greenhouse gas effect and inflict serious health problems (breathing problems); they largely contribute to the carbon monoxide pollution. The European regulations, unlike the national regulations which are applied in certain EU member states, try to impose a minimal standard concerning the operation of non-road mobile machinery. However, the railway industry claims that these regulations set standards that are too strict and that the timeframe given is too short for them to be fully assimilated.
by Alin Lupulescu
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