In 2016, the driver certification directive was amended to enable the exemption of train drivers on international corridors who only take their train as far as the first station after the border from the B1 language qualification standard for non-native speakers. Mazzola maintains that ‘we are not just speaking about the common language for train drivers, but we have to speak about all personnel which are involved in [operational] communication. The case for a common language is also arguably stronger in smaller European countries than bigger ones — the Benelux region being a case in point, where linguistic boundaries are already distinct, and the distances by rail between national frontiers are short, heightening the impact of improving international train operating procedures.