About us

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About us

According to the provisions of the Law no.55/2006 on the railway safety and of the Government Decision no. 1561/01.11.2006, modifying and completing the Government Decision no. 626/1998 on the Romanian Railway Authority-AFER organizing and functioning, the Romanian Railway Investigating Body- OIFR is an independent body within the Romanian Railway Authority – AFER, being designed to perform the following activities:

to investigate the serious railway accidents;

to investigate other railway accidents and incidents, that under slightly different on conditions might have led to serious accidents;
to investigate the tehnical failures of the structural subsystems or of interoperability constituents of the trans-European high speed or conventional rail systems;
to request or to offer assistance to similar investigating bodies from other Member States of the European Union or from the European Railway Agency to supply expertise or to carry out technical inspections, analyses or evaluations.
to draw up an annual report concerning the activities of the previous year, which is being published to the AFER’s Bulletin and to the website and is being transmitted to the European Railway Agency at latest September 30; also, is being published to the AFER’s Bulletin and to the website the final reports of the investigations carried out and is being transmitted to the European Railway Agency;
other tasks specific to its field of activity, assigned through normative documents.

What OIFR represents

According to the article no. 19 ‘Setting up the Romanian Railway Investigating Body and the obligation to investigate’ of the Law no. 55/2006:
(1) Is being set up the Romanian Railway Investigating Body, an idependent and permanent body within the Romanian Railway Authority – AFER, set up according to the Government Decision no.95/1998, approved with modifications and completions by Law no. 3/2002, with previous modifications and completions. The Romanian Railway Investigating Body is developing an investigation of serious accidents on the railway system, the main objective being to improve the railway safety and to prevent the railway accidents.
(2) The Romanian Railway Investigating Body can investigate other railway events, those accidents and incidents which under slightly different conditions might have led to serious accidents, including tehnical failures of the structural subsystems or of interoperability constituents of the trans - European high- speed or conventional rail systems. The Romanian Railway Investigating Body shall, at its discretion, decide, whether or not an investigation of such an accident or incident shall be undertaken. In its decision it shall take into account:
a. the seriousness of the accident or incident;
b. whether forms part of a series of accidents or incidents relevant to the system as whole;
c. its impact on railway safety on a Community level;
d. requests from infrastructure managers, railway undertakings, the Romanian Railway Safety Authority or of the Member States of the European Union.
(3) The extent of the investigations and the procedure to be followed in carryng out such investigations shall be determined by the Romanian Railway Investigating Body, taking into account the principles and the objectives of Articles 20 and 22 depending on the lessons it expects to draw from the accident or incident for the improvement of safety.
(4) The investigation shall in no case be concerned with apportioning blame or liability.

How was set up

Article I. - The Government Decision no 626/1998 on the Romanian Railway Authority - AFER organizing and functioning, published to the Romanian Official Journal, Part 1, no.373 of October the first, 1998 is being modified and is completed as follows:

1. Article no.1 will consist of:

"Article no. 1 - (1) The Romanian Railway Authority - AFER, public institution financed by extra-budgetary funds is the specialized technical body of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism in the railway field and subway transport.

(2) AFER is designed to ensure the following activities:

a) the safety authorization of the railway infrastructure managers;

b) to grant certificates, licenses to the railway undertakings in the field of the traffic safety;

c) to investigate and to examine the railway events and the serious accidents;

d) to assess and to survey the interoperability constituents and the structural subsystems of the railway system;

e) to survey the observance of the regulations in order to realize the interoperability of the high speed and conventional trans-European railway transport system on the Romanian teritory;

f) to ensure the state inspection and the safety control of the railway and subway transport;

g) to survey, to promote and to develop the regulations in the traffic safety field;

h) to authorize and to survey, from the technical point of view, the domestic suppliers of railway services and products ;

i) to ensure the railway register specific activity as regards the rolling stock registration and the situation of the public railway infrastructure;

j) to examine and to grant certificates, licenses, in case, to the staff working in the field of the railway system;

(3) Within AFER are functioning four independent bodies with permanent activity, provided by the Law no. 55/2006 concerning the railway safety:

a) Romanian Railway Safety Authority- ASFR;

b) Romanian Railway Notified Body- ONFR;

c) Romanian Railway Investigating Body- OIFR;

d) Romanian Railway Licensing Body – OLFR;

(4) The tasks and the Romanian Railway Authority organizing and functioning are established in the organizing and functioning regulation provided to annex no.1.

(5) The ASFR tasks are established within the regulation of organizing and functioning provided to annex no.1 of the Romanian Railway Authority regulation.

(6) The ONFR tasks are established within the regulation of organizing and functioning provided to annex no.2 of the Romanian Railway Authority regulation.

(7) The OIFR tasks are established within the regulation of organizing and functioning provided to annex no.3 of the Romanian Railway Authority regulation.

(8) The OLFR tasks are established within the regulation of organizing and functioning provided to annex no.4 of the Romanian Railway Authority regulation.

(9) “AFER is financed by own revenues resulting from the services carried out on the basis of tariffs established by the law, also by performing other activities concerning the revaluation of products from own or connected activities, editorial services, rents, studies, projects, tehnical reports, papers, other services, exploitation of some goods that he is managing and also other.”

2. The paragraph no. (5) of article no.2 consist of:

"(5) In order to realize the specific tasks that are resulting from the present decision, the standardized stock of AFER is being approved by the order of the ministry of transports, constructions and tourism.”

3. After paragraph no. (2) of the article no.4 a new paragraph is inserted, paragraph no.(3):

"(3) The Directors of the independent bodies provided to article no. 1, paragraph no. (3), are members of the Romanian Railway Authority Board “

4. Article no.5 will consist of:

"Art. 5. - (1) The ASFR management is being realized by a director committee consisting of 5 persons, his president being the ASFR’s Director, employee of ASFR, named by the order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

(2) The ONFR management is realized by a director committee, consisting of 5 persons, his president being the ONFR‘s Director, employee of ONFR named by the order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

(3) The OIFR leading is realized by a director committee, consisting of 5 persons, his president being the OIFR‘s Director, employee of OIFR named by the order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

(4) The OLFR leading is realized by a director committee, consisting of 5 persons, his president being the OLFR‘s Director, employee of OLFR named by the order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

(5) The members of the director committee are specialists within the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, named and revoked by the Order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

5. Article no. 6 will consist of:

"Article no.6 – The General Director and other members of the Board are named and revoked by the Order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

6. Article no.9 will consist of:

"Article no. 9 – Concerning the observance of the requirements of the railway and subway transport security, as regards activities like construction, repairing, maintaining and the rolling stock and railway infrastructure operating it shall be used only products, services and personnel for which AFER issued, by case, certificates, authorizations and/or licenses, if by internal and international regulations is not provided otherwise.”

7. Article no.10 will consist of:

"Article no. 10. – When the control and the state inspection are carried out, the specialized personnel of AFER and, by case, the personnel of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism have the right to access and control all forms of railway and subway transport, the railway units that are functioning under the authority or subordinated to the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, the railway undertakings and shunting operators units, the railway infrastructure managers and owners units, industrial rails or rolling stock, also the units of the economic operators that are supplying or are performing railway and subway services on the basis of a special card and in the conditions established by the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism.”

8. Annex no.1, article no. 2 will consist of:

"Article no.2 - AFER is a public institution with a legal structure, subordinated to the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, entirely financed by extra-budgetary funds, functioning according to the regulations in force.”

9. To annex no.1, after article no.3 a new article is inserted, article 31:

"Article 31. - Within AFER are functioning four independent bodies, provided by the Law no.55/2006 on the railway safety, their tasks being provided to annex no.1-4, part of this present regulation of organizing and functioning.”

10. To annex no.1, article no. 4 will consist of:

"Article no. 4 - AFER, through his departments, other than the fourth bodies provided to article no.31, has the following attributions:

a) to certify products, services and environment quality systems, respectively the system of the occupational health and security, as for other fields for which is authorized at national and international level;

b) to train and periodically attest the staff responsible with the quality, safety and occupational health systems, also for other, working in the rolling stock and railway infrastructure building, repairing, maintenance, technical revision and operating factories, also in other fields where it has national accreditation;

c) to realize studies and research in the railway field, with priority for the national research program;

d) to perform type technical checkings of the railway and subway vehicles, as well as for the rail urban vehicles;

e) to ensure the evidence and keeping the norms, regulations, specifications, instructions, methodologies, proceedings and prescriptions specific to its field of activity;

f) to edit, translate, multiply, print and to commercialize tehnical regulations, own publications and work, specific to its field of activity;

g) to publish periodically the list containing the legal and natural persons to whom AFER, through his bodies, released, withdrawn or suspended their licenses, certificates, authorizations, homologation documents or other also;

h) other tasks specific to its field of activity, assigned to his competence, by normative documents;”

11. Article no.5 of annex no.1 is being abrogated.

12. Article no.9 of annex no.1 will consist of:

"Article no. 9. - The organizatorical structure of AFER is approved by the Order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, ensuring also representation by the eith safety inspectorates of the Romanian Railway Safety Authority within AFER, according to the legal provisions in force. “

13. Article no.10 of annex no.1 is being abrogated.

14. To annex no.1, after paragraph no.2) of the article no. 11, a new pararagraph is inserted, consisting of:

"(3) The Directors of the independent bodies provided within article no. 31 are members of the AFER’s Board.”

15. Article no. 12 of annex no. 1 is being abrogated.

16. Article no.13 of annex no.1 will consist of:

"Article no. 13. - The General Director of AFER and the other members of the AFER’s Board are named and revoked by the Order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.”

17. Article no.14 of the annex no.1 will consist of:

"Art. 14. - The wage of AFER’s General Director and the allowance of the AFER’s Board members are being established by the Order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.”

18. To annex no.1, letter c) of article no.18 will consist of:

"c) to ensure the executive management of AFER;"

19. To annex no.1, paragraph no. (2) of the article no.19 will consist of:

"(2) The meeting is chaired by the president, and in his absence by a member of the Board, named by the president according to the Board regulation."

20. Annex no. 1 "The Romanian Railway Authority - AFER functioning and organizing regulation” to the Government Decision no. 626/1998 is completed with annex no. 1-4, whose content is provided to annex no. 1-4 to the present decision.

Article. II. - the Governement Decision no.626/1998 on the Romanian Railway Authority - AFER functioning and organizing, published to the Official Journal, Part I, no. 373 of October the first, 1998, with modifications and completions of the present decision, will be republished to the Romanian Official Journal, Part I, giving new numbers to texts.

Annex no. 3

Regulation

Concerning the Romanian Railway Investigating Body.

CHAPTER I

General provisions

Article no. 1 - The Romanian Railway Investigating Body, named ONFR, set up according to the Law no.55/2006 concerning the railway safety is an independent body that is functioning within the Romanian Railway Authority - AFER.

Article no. 2 - OIFR is an independent body as regards the organizing, the legal structure and the decisional process in relation to any railway infrastructure manager, railway undertaking, tarrifs body, allocation body and notified body, also in relation to any part whose interests could come into conflict with the OIFR’s tasks.

CHAPTER II

Tasks

Article no. 3. - (1) OIFR‘s tasks are established to article no. 21, paragraph no.(1) of the Law no.55/2006.

(2) In order to fulfil this tasks, OIFR is designed to carry out the following activities:

a) to investigate the serious railway events;

b) to investigate other railway events and accidents, that on different conditions could lead to serious accidents;

c) to investigate the tehnical defects of the structural subsystems or of the interoperability constituents of high speed or conventional European railway systems;

d) To ask or to offer assistance to similar investigating bodies from other Member States of the European Union or from the European Railway Agency granting competences or to develop tehnical inspections, analysis and valuations.

e) to draw an annual report concerning the activities of the previos year, which is being published to the AFER’s Bulletin and to the website and is being transmitted to the European Railway Agency at latest September 30; also, is being published to the AFER’s Bulletin and to the website the final reports of the investigations carried out and is being transmitted to the European Railway Agency;

f) other tasks specific to its field of activity, assigned through normative documents.

(3) In fulfiling his tasks concerning the investigation of the railway incidents and events, the OIFR specialized staff has the right to access all railway transport forms, the railway units that are functioning under the authority or subordinated to the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, the units of the railway undertakings and the owners of railway infrastructure or of the industrial rails, also the units of the economic operators that are supplying or performing railway products or services, on the basis of a special card and in the conditions established by the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism.

CHAPTER III

The leading bodies of OIFR

Art. 4. -

(1) The OIFR management is being exercised by a director committee consisting of 5 persons, his president being the OIFR’s Director, employee of ASFR, named by the order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

(2) The members of the director committee are specialists within the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, named and revoked by the Order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

(3) The OIFR’s director wage and the allowances of the director committee members are established by the order of the Minsitry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force.

(4) The OIFR’s Director doesn’t benefit by the allowance for his activity within the director committee.

Art. 5. - The director committee of OIFR has the following tasks and competences:

a) to approve his own functioning regulation;

b) to propose the organizatorical structure of OIFR and to submit for the approval to the AFER’s Board;

c) to approve the strategy of modernisation and development of OIFR;

d) to approve the annual report of the OIFR activities;

e) to approve the sending of the annual report of the OIFR activities to the European Railway Agency;

f) to approve the legal frame as regards the railway incidents and events;

g) to analise and to survey the development of the OIFR activities;

h) to submit for the approval to the Ministry of Transports,Constructions and Tourism, the OIFR’s actions;

i) to submit for the approval to the AFER’s Board the OIFR’s actions;

j) other tasks assigned through normative documents.

Article no. 6 - (1) The Director Committee meets every month or when neccesary, by request of the president or at least of two members.

(2) The meeting is chaired by the president and in case of his absence by a member of the director committee named by the president.

(3) The meetings of the director committee can take place with the condition of participation of at least a half plus one of the total number of the committee members.

(4) The director committee decisions are taken with majority of the votes of his members.

Art. 7. - The OIFR’s Director ensures the executive management of OIFR.

CHAPTER IV

The organizatorical structure

Article no. 8 - The OIFR’s organizatorical structure is being approved by the Order of the Ministry of Transports, Constructions and Tourism, according to the legal provisions in force..

What OIFR investigates

Who approves

How an investigation is performed

According to article no.22 “The investigation proceeding” of the Law no. 55/2006:
(1) A railway accident or incident shall be investigated by the Romanian Railway Investigating Body if it occurred on the Romanian teritory.If it is not possible to estabilish if the railway accident or incident occurred on the Romanian teritory or if it occured on or close to a border instalation between Romania and another Member State of the European Union, the investigating bodies of this two states shall agree which one of them will carry it out in cooperation. The other body shall in the first case be allowed to participate in the investigation and fully share its results.

Investigation bodies from another member state shall be invited to participate in an investigation whenever a railway undertaking established and licensed in that member state is involved in he accident or incident. This provisions shall not Romania or another Member State to agree that the relevant investigating bodies could carry out investigations in cooperation, in other circumstances.
(2) For each railway accident or incident, the Romanian Railway Investigating Body provides the necessary resources to carry out the investigation. The resources can be obtained from inside or outside the Romanian Railway Investigating Body depending on the character of the accident or incident to be investigated.
(3) The investigation shall be carried out with as much openness as possible, so that all parties can be heard and can share the results. The relevant infrastructure manager and the railway undertakings involved, the Romanian Railway Safety Authority, the victims and their relatives, owners of the damaged prperty, manufacturers, the emergency services and the reprezentatives of staff and users shall be regularly informed of the investigation and its progress, given an opportunity, at their request, to submit their opinions and views related to the investigation and having the possibility to make remarks on the reports informations.
(4) In short time the Romanian Railway Investigating Body is finishing the examination where the accident took place in order to permit to the railway infrastructure manager to rebuild the railway infrastructure and to be opened as soon as possible to the railway transport.

About us

What OIFR represents

How was set up

What OIFR investigates

Who approves

How an investigation is performed

Who is in charge with the investigation of a railway event or accident

The rights of OIFR in developing an investigation

How can we know the results of the investigations

Which are the relations of OIFR with similar bodies from Europe