Channel Tunnel Rail Link Act 1996

16 Licensing

(1) Section 6(1) of the [1993 c. 43.] Railways Act 1993 (which prohibits any person from acting as the operator of a network, station or train being used on a network unless authorised by a licence under section 8 of that Act) shall not apply in relation to—

(a) any network comprised in the rail link,

(b) any rail link station, or

(c) any train being used, in circumstances in which subsection (2) below applies, on a network comprised in the rail link.

(2) This subsection applies if—

(a) the train is being used to provide a service involving travel through the Channel Tunnel, or

(b) the operator of the train is a rail link undertaker and the train is being used to provide a service for the carriage of goods which does not involve carriage outside the rail link.

(3) There shall not be included in a licence under section 8 of the Railways Act 1993 any condition relating to an activity in respect of which the licence holder is exempt from section 6(1) of that Act by virtue of subsection (1) above; and any condition which is included in such a licence shall be of no effect so far as relating to such an activity.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (1)(b) above, the following stations are rail link stations—

(a) St. Pancras in London,

(b) any station constructed for the purposes of the rail link in exercise of the powers conferred by this Part of this Act, and

(c) any station constructed for the purposes of the rail link at Stratford, in the London Borough of Newham.

(5) Any expression used in this section and Part I of the Railways Act 1993 shall have the same meaning in this section as it has in that Part.