1.   Operators of service facilities referred to in paragraph 2 may request to be exempted from the application of all or some of the provisions of this Regulation, with the exception of Articles 4(2)(a) to (d) and (m) and 5.

Operators of service facilities that exist solely for use by heritage railway operators for their own purposes may request to be exempted from the application of all the provisions of this Regulation.

Such requests shall be submitted to the regulatory body and be duly substantiated.

2.   Regulatory bodies may decide to exempt operators of service facilities that operate the following service facilities or provide the following services:

3.   Regulatory bodies shall publish any decision granting an exemption referred to in paragraph 2 on their website within two weeks after adoption of the decision.

4.   When the criteria for granting an exemption referred to in paragraph 2 are no longer fulfilled, the regulatory body shall revoke the exemption.

5.   Regulatory bodies shall develop and publish common decision making principles for the application of the criteria referred to in paragraph 2.

1.   Operators of service facilities shall establish a service facility description for the service facilities and services for which they are responsible.

2.   The service facility description shall include at least the following information to the extent it is required by this Regulation:

1.   Operators of service facilities shall make publicly available the service facility description free of charge, in one of the following ways:

Where the infrastructure manager to whose network the facility is connected is exempted from the obligation to publish a network statement in accordance with Article 2(3) or (4) of Directive 2012/34/EU, the operator of a service facility shall provide the relevant link or ready-to-be-published information to the main infrastructure manager.

2.   Infrastructure managers shall specify in the network statement or on their web portal the deadline to provide information or the link to be published in the network statement, with a view to its publication by the date referred to in Article 27(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU.

Infrastructure managers shall provide a common template to be developed by the railway sector in cooperation with regulatory bodies by 30 June 2018 that operators of service facilities may use to submit the information. The template shall be reviewed and updated as necessary.

3.   Operators of service facilities shall keep the service facility description up to date as necessary. They shall in due time inform the applicants having already requested access or subscribed to one or more services in the service facility about any relevant changes in the facility description.

4.   In the case of service facilities operated by more than one service facility operator or where services in the facility are supplied by more than one supplier, those operators or suppliers shall coordinate with each other in order to:

If this coordination is not successful, the regulatory body may adopt a decision designating one of the service facility operators to comply with the requirement laid down in the first subparagraph. Any relevant costs shall be split among all service facility operators concerned.

5.   The obligation referred to in paragraph 1 and Article 4 shall be met in a way that is proportionate to the size, technical characteristics and importance of the service facility concerned.

1.   The regulatory body may require operators of service facilities to justify why they designate a rail-related service as basic, additional or ancillary.

2.   Upon request of an applicant operators of service facilities listed in points 2(a) to (g) of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU shall provide indicative information on available service facility capacity.

3.   Wherever technically possible with reasonable economic efforts, operators of service facilities shall make the information referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article and information referred to in Article 4(2)(l) available on a real-time basis through the use of a common web portal.

1.   Applicants shall submit their requests for access to service facilities and rail-related services in accordance with the deadlines set by operators of service facilities. Where relevant, operators of service facilities listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU shall give due consideration to timelines and priority criteria set out by infrastructure managers for the scheduling process when determining these deadlines with a view to preventing inconsistencies.

2.   Operators of service facilities listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU and infrastructure managers shall cooperate with the aim of ensuring that the allocation of capacity on infrastructure and in service facilities is consistent where necessary. The obligation of cooperation shall also apply to operators of linked service facilities. The applicants concerned may be involved in this cooperation upon request. Applicants may also request involvement of entities responsible for granting access to private branch lines and sidings needed to get access to service facilities which are essential for the provision of railway transport services in the cooperation.

Where an applicant is seeking supply of additional or ancillary services listed in points 3 and 4 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU offered in the facility by one or more operators of service facility other than the one responsible for granting access to the facility, the applicant may request participation of all operators of service facilities providing these services in the cooperation.

As long as the scheduling process conducted by the infrastructure manager is pending, requests for access to service facilities and rail-related services shall not be rejected on grounds that a requested train path has not yet been allocated. However, operators of service facilities listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU and infrastructure managers concerned shall seek consistency of their respective decisions.

3.   Where relevant, operators of service facilities, infrastructure managers and applicants shall cooperate to ensure efficient operation of trains from and to service facilities. In the case of trains using rail freight terminals, including those in maritime or inland ports, this cooperation shall include the exchange of information on train tracking and tracing and, where available, the estimated time of arrival and departure in the event of delays and disturbances.

4.   Upon request of the regulatory body operators of service facilities shall demonstrate in writing for the last three years that they have fulfilled the cooperation requirements in accordance with this Article.

1.   Requests for access to service facilities and use of rail-related services may be made by applicants.

2.   Applicants shall indicate in their requests the service facility or the rail-related services for which they have requested access, or both. Operators of service facilities shall not make the access to the facility or supply of a rail-related service subject to mandatory purchase of other services which are not related to the service requested.

3.   The operator of a service facility shall acknowledge receipt of a request without undue delay. When the request does not contain all the information required in accordance with the service facility description and necessary to take a decision, the operator of a service facility concerned shall inform the applicant thereof and shall set a reasonable deadline for submitting the missing information. If such information is not submitted within that deadline, the request may be rejected.

1.   After receipt of all necessary information, the operator of a service facility shall respond to requests for access to and supply of services in service facilities listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU within the reasonable time limit set by the regulatory body in accordance with Article 13(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU. Different deadlines may be set for different types of service facilities and/or services.

2.   Where the operator of a service facility has responded with an offer of access to the service facility, that offer shall remain valid for a reasonable period of time which it specifies and which shall take account of the business needs of the applicant.

3.   Regulatory bodies shall set the time limits to respond to requests submitted by applicants as provided for in Article 13(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU prior to the publication of the first network statement subject to the rules of this implementing Regulation in order to ensure compliance with Article 27(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU.

4.   For ad hoc requests concerning access to service facilities and services listed in points (a) to (d) and (f) to (i) of point 2 of Annex II, when setting the time limits in accordance with Article 13(4) of Directive 2012/34/EU, regulatory bodies shall take into account the time limits set out in Article 48(1) of Directive 2012/34/EU. Where regulatory bodies have not defined time limits for such ad-hoc requests, the operator of a service facility shall answer the request within the time limits set out in Article 48(1) of the Directive.

Where the operator of a service facility has defined an annual deadline for submitting requests for access to service facilities and rail-related services listed in points (a) to (d) and (f) to (i) of point 2 of Annex II, the time limits for answering late requests defined by the regulatory body shall take account of the time limits applied by infrastructure managers for processing such requests.

For service facilities and rail-related services listed in point (e) of point 2 of Annex II, the time limit shall start once the technical compatibility of the rolling stock with those facilities and the equipment has been assessed and the applicant was informed thereof.

5.   Operators of service facilities providing additional and ancillary services listed in points 3 and 4 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU shall respond to requests for such services within the time limit set by the regulatory body or, where such a time limit has not been set, within reasonable time. Where an applicant submits ad hoc requests for several rail-related services supplied in one service facility and it indicates that only their simultaneous allocation is of use, all service facility operators concerned, including suppliers of additional and ancillary services listed in points 3 and 4 of Annex II, shall respond to those requests within the reasonable time limit referred to in paragraph 4.

For rail-related services listed in point (e) of point 4 of Annex II, the time limit shall start once the technical compatibility of the rolling stock with the facilities and the equipment has been assessed and the applicant was informed thereof.

6.   With the agreement of the applicant concerned, the time limits referred to in paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 may be extended.

7.   Rights of access to railway infrastructure and rail related services shall not be transferred to other applicants.

8.   If an applicant intends not to make use of a right of access to a service facility or a rail related service granted by the service facility operator, it shall inform the operator concerned without undue delay.

1.   Where an operator of a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU receives a request for access to the service facility or supply of a service that is in conflict with another request or concerns service facility capacity already allocated, it shall attempt, through discussion and coordination with the applicants concerned, to ensure the best possible matching of all requests. This coordination shall also involve suppliers of additional and ancillary services listed in points 3 and 4 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU where such services are offered in the facility and requested by an applicant. Any modification of access rights already granted shall be subject to the agreement of the applicant concerned.

2.   Operators of service facilities listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU shall not reject requests for access to their service facility or supply of a service nor indicate to the applicant viable alternatives, when capacity that matches the needs of the applicant is available in their service facility or is expected to become available during or following the coordination procedure.

3.   Operators of service facilities shall consider different options enabling them to accommodate conflicting requests for access to the service facility or supply of service in the service facility. Those options shall, when necessary, encompass measures to maximise the capacity available in the facility, to the extent is does not require additional investment in resources or facilities. Such measures may include:

4.   Applicants and operators of the service facilities may jointly request the regulatory body to participate as an observer in the coordination procedure.

5.   Where a request for access to a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU could not be accommodated following the coordination procedure and the service facility is close to congestion, the regulatory body may request the operator of the service facility to take measures aimed at enabling the accommodation of additional requests for access to their facility. Such measures shall be transparent and non-discriminatory.

1.   Where a request for access to service facilities and rail-related services cannot be accommodated after the coordination procedure, the operator of a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU shall inform the applicant concerned and the regulatory body, upon its request, without undue delay. Member States may require that the regulatory body is informed even in the absence of such a request.

2.   The operator of a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU and the applicant shall, if a request cannot be accommodated, jointly assess whether there are viable alternatives allowing to operate the freight or passenger service concerned on the same or alternative routes under economically acceptable conditions. The applicant shall not be required to disclose its business strategy.

3.   For the purpose of paragraph 2 the operator of the service facility shall indicate possible alternatives, including, where relevant, in other Member States, on the basis of other service facility descriptions, information published on a common web portal in accordance with Article 5 and any information provided by the applicant. When proposing possible alternatives, at least the following criteria shall be taken into account, to the extent that those can be assessed by the operator of the service facility:

The operator of a service facility shall respect the commercial confidentiality of information provided by the applicant.

4.   Where information on the capacity of the proposed alternative is not publicly available, the applicant shall verify it.

The applicant shall assess whether using the proposed alternative would allow it to operate the envisaged transport service under economically acceptable conditions. It shall inform the operator of the service facility about the outcome of its assessment within a jointly agreed deadline.

5.   The applicant may request the operator of a service facility not to indicate the viable alternatives and not to proceed to the joint assessment.

1.   Where the operator of a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU and the applicant conclude that no viable alternative exists, and it is not possible to accommodate the request for access to or supply of a service in the facility following the coordination procedure, the operator of a service facility may refuse the request.

Where the operator of the service facility and the applicant cannot agree on a viable alternative, the operator of the service facility may refuse the request indicating the alternatives which it considers to be viable.

The applicant may complain to the regulatory body in accordance with Article 13(5) of Directive 2012/34/EU.

2.   Where the operator of the service facility and the applicant have jointly identified viable alternatives, the operator of the service facility may refuse the request.

3.   Operators of a service facility referred to in Article 13(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU shall justify in writing to the applicant why the request could not be accommodated following the coordination procedure and why, on the basis of the information available, they consider that any proposed alternative meets the applicant's requirements and is viable.

4.   An operator of a service facility refusing a request shall demonstrate to the regulatory body and to the applicant, upon their request, the reasons for the refusal, including the alternatives examined and the outcome of the coordination procedure.

5.   In the cases referred to in Article 12(5) the operator of a service facility may refuse the request without complying with the requirements laid down in paragraphs 3 and 4 of this Article.

6.   Where the applicant repeatedly failed to pay for access rights already granted and used, the operator of a service facility may request financial guarantees to safeguard its legitimate expectations about future revenues and utilisation of the facility. Information on such guarantees shall be published in the service facility description.

1.   Service facilities listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU which have not been in use for at least two consecutive years shall be subject to expression of interest and lease or rent. Information on unused facilities shall be published in accordance with Article 5.

2.   The two-year period referred to in paragraph 1 shall start on the day following the day on which a rail-related service was supplied in the service facility concerned for the last time.

3.   An applicant interested in using a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU which has not been in use for at least two consecutive years shall express its interest in writing to the operator of the facility concerned and inform the regulatory body thereof. Such an expression of interest shall demonstrate the needs of the railway undertaking concerned. The operator of the service facility may decide to resume operations in a way that satisfies the railway undertaking's demonstrated needs.

4.   Where the owner of a service facility does not operate that facility, the operator of that facility shall inform the owner about the expression of interest within 10 days following its receipt. The owner of the facility shall publicise that the facility is available for lease or rent, as a whole or in part, unless the operator of the service facility has decided to resume operations after the expression of interest.

5.   Before such publication is made, the owner of the service facility may allow the operator of the service facility to submit its observations on that publication within four weeks. The operator may object to that publication by submitting documents proving that there is an ongoing process of reconversion, launched before the expression of interest.

6.   The regulatory body shall be informed by the owner about the reconversion process and may request documents from the operator in order to assess its plausibility.

If the assessment is unsatisfactory the regulatory body shall require the publication of the operation of the facility as being for lease or rent, as a whole or in part.

7.   Without prejudice to applicable public procurement rules, the owner of a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU shall publicise on its web portal a notice on the lease or rent of the service facility concerned and shall inform thereof the regulatory body and the infrastructure manager to whose network the facility is connected. The publication shall include all information necessary to enable interested undertakings to submit an offer to take over operation of the facility, as a whole or in part. This information shall include in particular:

8.   The infrastructure manager concerned shall also publish on its web portal the information referred to in paragraph 7.

9.   Without prejudice to applicable public procurement rules, the owner of a service facility listed in point 2 of Annex II to Directive 2012/34/EU shall select the successful candidate and make a reasonable offer without undue delay.

10.   Member States may apply existing procedures for the regulatory control of decommissioning of service facilities. In this case the regulatory body may grant exemptions from the application of the provisions of this Article.