Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail

The Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail-OTIF is an intergovernmental organisation that governs international rail transport. As of 2015, 50 European, African, and Near Eastern states are members of OTIF. M.François Davenne has been the Secretary general since 2012 (reelected 2015).

OTIF deploys tools to facilitate international rail traffic and works closely together to achieve this with the International Rail Transport Committee (CIT), the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the European Railway Agency (ERA), the European Commission DG MOVE and the Organization for Cooperation of Railways (OSJD).

OTIF was organised on 1 May 1985 pursuant to the Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail (COTIF), which was concluded in 1980. The predecessor of OTIF was the Central Office for International Carriage by Rail (OCTI), which was organised in 1893.

COTIF was modified by a Protocol that was signed in Vilnius on 3 June 1999. Prior to the Vilnius Protocol, the principal objective of OTIF was to develop uniform systems of law which could apply to the carriage of passengers and freight in international rail traffic. These systems of law have been in existence for decades and are known as the CIV (for passengers) and CIM (for freight/goods) Uniform Rules.

As of 2015, there are 50 member states of OTIF plus the European Union: Albania, Algeria, Austria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, European Union, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Latvia, Lebanon, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Republic of Macedonia, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine and United Kingdom.

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