¹ This Law regulates the carriage of goods by railway undertakings as well as the construction and operation of transshipment facilities dedicated to combined transport (ITTC) and connecting channels.

² It shall apply mutatis mutandis to the carriage of goods by cable or navigation undertakings.

¹ The Confederation creates the framework conditions that allow:

A.

Sustainable development of the transport of goods by rail, cable or shipping companies (freight transport);

B.

Effective interaction with other modes of transportation;

C.

The construction and operation of ITTC and appropriate connecting channels, as well as their optimal link to the rail, road and port infrastructure;

D.

Non-discriminatory access to RTIs and connecting channels.

² The tenders for the carriage of goods must be self-financed. However, Confederation may:

A.

Participating in the competition orders of the cantons;

B.

Encourage the development of new offers.

³ The Federal Council may, in accordance with internationally recognised standards, lay down requirements for the quality of the carriage of goods and the consequences of non-compliance with these requirements.

¹ The Federal Council is developing a design for the carriage of goods within the meaning of s. 13 of the Act of 22 June 1979 on land use planning ¹ .

² It sets the foundations for development:

A.

Yards and facilities referred to in s. 62, para. 1, let. E, of the Federal Railways Act of 20 December 1957 (LCdF) ² ;

B.

Public loading facilities referred to in s. 62, para. 1, let. F, LCdF

C.

RTIs;

D.

Connecting channels;

E.

Other important equipment for the carriage of goods by rail.

³ The Federal Council aligns the design with the development of rail, road and port infrastructure, the transportation sector plan, other federal sectoral plans and cantonal management plans.

⁴ It associates the cantons and the actors involved in the design of the design sufficiently early.

The expropriation right under federal law of 20 June 1930 on expropriation ¹ May be used for the construction of ITTC or connecting channels.

¹ The Federal Council lays down requirements for the transport of dangerous goods.

² In particular, it lays down requirements concerning:

A.

The procedure for verifying the compliance of containers of dangerous goods with the essential requirements;

B.

The procedure for the recognition of the independent services responsible for conducting the conformity assessments.

¹ Within the framework of national cooperation for security referred to in Art. 119 of the Act of 3 February 1995 on the army ¹ , companies are obliged to give priority to transport in favour of the Confederation and the cantons.

² The Federal Council regulates the modalities. It may provide for an interim exemption for an undertaking from the obligation to transport if it faces particular operating difficulties.

The extracontractual liability of undertakings is governed by Art. 40 B To 40 F LCdF ¹ .

¹ The Confederation may make investment contributions for the construction and extension and repair of ITTC and connecting channels.

² The Confederation's investment contribution is limited to 60 % of the attributable costs. In the case of projects of national importance in transport policy, it may be increased to at most 80 %.

³ Decisions concerning the allocation and calculation of contributions shall be made in the light of the objectives pursued in the field of transport policy, energy and the environment, economic criteria, the benefits of third parties and The design referred to in s. 3.

⁴ The Confederation may allocate repayable loans for the construction and extension of ITTC abroad, in addition to investment in lost funds.

⁵ The grant of a contribution shall be subject to certain conditions, in particular ensuring non-discriminatory access to the facilities.

⁶ The Confederation may also make investment contributions to the construction of port facilities for the transhipment of goods in combined transport. These contributions are limited to 50 % of the attributable costs.

⁷ The Federal Assembly decides by federal order to allocate the necessary multi-annual framework credits for investment contributions.

¹ If a canton orders an offer of rail freight transport, the Confederation can take part in the order. Federal financial assistance must not exceed the amount of the cantonal contribution. Operating contributions for rail freight traffic on the narrow-track railway network are excluded from the federal contribution limit.

² The Confederation may encourage new rail freight transport offers until they can be self-financed, but for a maximum period of three years.

Confederation can encourage investment in technical innovations related to rail freight transport.

¹ The construction and modification of ITTC that are of national importance in transportation policy matters are governed by the LCdF ¹ .

² The Confederation defines, in the design referred to in Art. 3, the RTIs that are of national importance in terms of transportation policy.

The cantons and municipalities shall take the spatial planning measures necessary to ensure, to the extent that this is feasible and economically bearable, a service to industrial or craft areas by means of Connection.

¹ The construction and modification of connecting roads requires a construction authorization subject to the cantonal law.

² Before making a decision, the authority responsible for issuing the authority to construct (the governing authority) shall submit the application to the Federal Transport Office (OFT) for verification of compliance with the provisions of railway law.

³ The OFT asks the infrastructure manager to take a position from the point of view of railway law. It renders its opinion on the basis of this position and specifies in particular whether an authorization to operate within the meaning of s. 18 W LCdF ¹ Is required or not.

⁴ The OFT's opinion is binding on the governing authority.

⁵ The governing authority shall communicate the authorization to construct to the OFT. The latter is entitled to take recourse to the means of redress provided for by federal and cantonal law.

¹ The technical and operating provisions of the railway legislation also apply to the planning, construction, operation, maintenance and repair of connecting roads.

² The connection shall lay down the necessary operating requirements.

³ The Federal Council sets out which provisions of the railway legislation relating to safety are applicable to the construction, operation, maintenance and repair of connecting roads.

¹ The infrastructure manager must consent to the connection to his network when the following conditions are met:

A.

The safety of railway operations is guaranteed;

B.

The future extension of rail facilities is not compromised;

C.

The need is certified.

² It must not subordinate this consent to disproportionate conditions.

³ It may adapt or remove connecting devices:

A.

When a change in the construction or operation of the infrastructure required;

B.

Where the security of the operation of the infrastructure required;

C.

When the connecting track has not been operating for five years and does not appear to have to be carried out again in the near future.

¹ The connecting track and the land on which it is located may be the property of different persons.

² The right to construct and use a connecting track may be registered as an easement in the land registry.

¹ The infrastructure manager and the direct connections settle their relationships in a written connection contract.

² The connection contract shall be supplemented by a situation plan which indicates the lands affected by the connecting track, the connection point and the location of the major equipment. The plan must also contain all the necessary information on the ownership regime, as well as on the actual rights and, where appropriate, mandatory in relation to the road.

³ The connections shall settle in writing their relations with other stakeholders concerning the connecting track.

¹ The connection shall bear the costs of the construction, operation, maintenance, repair, adaptation and dismantling of connecting channels and related equipment.

² It maintains the connecting track ready for operation. Any third party authorized to connect and use it shall participate in the resulting costs within the limits of their interest in the connecting track.

³ The infrastructure manager shall bear the costs of adapting and extending its installations, including the connecting device, caused by the connecting track.

⁴ It also bears the costs of dismantling the connecting device. The Federal Council shall determine the conditions under which the grant may be taken to participate in such costs.

¹ Any connection must, with full compensation, consent to the connection of its connecting track and be used by third parties when the connection to the railway network cannot be made more efficiently.

² If the circumstances justify it and if it is reasonably required, the connecting tracks must be constructed in such a way as to preserve the possibility of connecting them with other routes.

³ The connection shall, with compensation, adapt its connecting track to allow for the passage of third parties. The benefits to be derived from this adaptation are duly taken into account. This may require a fee advance.

⁴ The granting of the grant is required to provide adequate liability insurance coverage. The Federal Council regulates the modalities.

¹ The contract for the use of rail cars regulates the use of railway cars for transportation within the meaning of this Act.

² In the context of domestic transport as well as international carriage, the contract for the use of wagons shall be governed by Appendix D (uniform rules concerning contracts for the use of vehicles in international rail traffic-CUV) of the Convention on International Carriage by Rail (COTIF) in its contents of the amending Protocol of 3 June 1999 ¹ .

³ The Federal Council may issue derogations for national transport.

¹ By the contract of carriage, the company undertakes, against remuneration, to transport a good to and from the consignee.

² The contract of carriage does not require any particular form to be valid.

³ In the context of national and international carriage, the contract of carriage shall be governed for the remainder by Appendix B (Uniform Rules Concerning the International Carriage by Rail of Goods-CIM) of the COTIF in Its contents of the Protocol of Amendment of 3 June 1999 ¹ .

⁴ The Federal Council may issue derogations for national transport.

¹ The OFT is monitoring the connecting tracks under railway law. The Federal Council may entrust this task to third parties.

² The OFT may regulate and supervise the specific training of the staff of the connected persons. For security reasons, it may request at any time that connection contracts, situation plans or operating requirements be amended. These amendments are not compensable.

³ The connecting channels shall be submitted for the remainder to the supervision of the competent authority under the cantonal law.

⁴ Raids shall provide, free of charge, the staff and equipment necessary for the supervision of the supervisory authorities and shall provide them with all the necessary information.

¹ The OFT shall rule on disputes concerning:

A.

The obligation to consent to the connection (art. 15) and the conditions imposed on the connection;

B.

The application of the LCdF ¹ , including the construction and operation of connecting roads, their crossings with roads and other facilities, and vehicles;

C.

Safety requirements for the construction, operation, maintenance and repair of connecting tracks.

² The proceedings before the OFT are governed by the general provisions of the Federal Judicial Organisation.

³ Financial disputes fall within the jurisdiction of the civil court, in so far as they do not concern the financial incentive referred to in Art. 8 to 10.

⁴ Litigation referred to in s. 40 A ^Bis , para. 1, LCdF falls within the jurisdiction of the Arbitration Board in the field of railways.

⁵ The competent authority under the cantonal law shall rule on all other disputes.

¹ A fine of up to 100 000 francs is imposed on any person who infrings a performance provision of s. 5, para. 1, or s. 6, para. 2, the violation of which was declared punishable by the Federal Council.

² Every person who commits an offence that endangerates the life or bodily integrity of another person, unless he has committed a more serious offence, shall be punished by deprivation of liberty for one year or a pecuniary penalty. Meaning of another Act.

³ A fine of up to 50,000 francs is imposed on anyone who acts negligently.

⁴ The prosecution and judgment of the offences are the responsibility of the cantons.

¹ The Federal Council shall issue the implementing provisions.

² In particular, it may lay down requirements to prevent discrimination in the field of the transport of goods.

The repeal and amendment of other acts are set out in the Annex.

¹ For offers ordered under the old right, it is possible to conclude agreements under this right for up to three years from the entry into force of this Law.

² Connecting devices to the network of an infrastructure manager shall become property of the infrastructure manager, without compensation, one year after the entry into force of this Law.

³ Rents wishing to remain owners of the connecting devices must notify the infrastructure manager within one year of the coming into force of this Act. In this case, they remain responsible for financing the maintenance, repair and extension of the devices in question.

¹ This Law shall be subject to the referendum.

² The Federal Council shall fix the date of entry into force.

³ Art. 9 has effect until December 31, 2027.