Considerations on the Intergovernmental Organization for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF)
Considerations on the Intergovernmental Organization for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF)

Summary/Abstract: At the 1878 International Conference in Bern a draft was drawn up on the basis of which, in 1890, the Convention concerning International Carriage of Goods by Rail (the first in the history of rail transport) was concluded in Bern. Under this convention, the Central Office for International Carriage by Rail, the forerunner of the Intergovernmental Organization for International Carriage by Rail, was established in 1893. The 1890 Convention was revised several times; in 1980, the eighth revision of the convention took place in Bern. On this occasion, the Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail (referred to as C.O.T.I.F.) was concluded. The contracting parties agreed to establish the Intergovernmental Organization for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF). O.T.I.F. was established on 1 May 1985, the date of the entry into force of C.O.T.I.F.. The organization has its headquarters in Bern and has legal personality. C.O.T.I.F. governs the functioning of the organization, sets its objectives, structure and operation. The fundamental purpose of O.T.I.F.is to establish a uniform legal regime applicable to the carriage of passengers, luggage and goods in direct international traffic between Member States using railways, and to facilitate the implementation and development of this regime. Its basic legal instrument is the Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail, with its seven annexes. Romania ratified the Convention concerning International Carriage by Rail in 1983. In 2011, the European Union adhered to C.O.T.I.F..

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