CER solidarity with the victims of the tragic rail accident in Tempi, central Greece

The Community of European of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) would like to express its deepest condolences to the families of the victims of the recent train collision in Tempi, central Greece, and offers its solidarity and support to all who have been affected, including the rescue teams, and the staff of Hellenic railways and OSE.  

The responsibility for investigation of rail accidents is with the national authorities and CER neither investigates nor comments on railway accidents/incidents, but will follow the development of the situation carefully in order to learn from the result of the inquiries and the proposals to improve, where possible at local, national and EU level, railway safety.

According to Directive (EU) 2016/798 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2016 on railway safety, an accident or incident shall be investigated by the investigating body of the Member State in which it occurred. The objective of the investigation shall be to improve, where possible, railway safety and the prevention of accidents. The investigating body shall make public the final report in the shortest possible time and normally not later than 12 months after the date of the occurrence. Within 7 days of the decision to open an investigation, the investigating body shall inform the European Union Agency for Railways thereof. The information shall indicate the date, time and place of the occurrence, as well as its type and its consequences as regards fatalities, injuries and material damage.

Serious accidents on the railways are rare. However, they can have disastrous consequences and raise concern among the public about the safety performance of the Union rail system. All such accidents should therefore be investigated from a safety perspective to avoid recurrence, with the results of the investigations being made publicly available. Other accidents and incidents should also be subject to safety investigations when they involve significant precursors to a serious accident. All detailed provisions can be found in CHAPTER V ACCIDENT AND INCIDENT INVESTIGATION of Directive (EU) 2016/798 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2016 on railway safety.