PURPOSE : to establish the Marco Polo Programme in order to contribute to an efficient and sustainable road transport system.
COMMUNITY MEASURE : Regulation 1382/2003/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the granting of Community financial assistance to improve the environmental performance of the freight transport system.
CONTENT : This Regulation establishes a financing instrument, called the "Marco Polo Programme", or "the Programme". The objective is to reduce congestion, to improve the environmental performance of the transport system and to enhance intermodal transport, the period from 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2010. By the end of the Programme, there should be a traffic shift of the expected yearly aggregate increase of international road freight traffic, measured in tonne-kilometres, to short sea shipping, rail and inland waterways or to a combination of modes of transport in which road journeys are as short as possible.
The main points of the Regulation are as follows:
The Marco Polo Programme will cover modal shift actions, catalyst actions and common learning actions:
- involving the territory of at least two Member States, or
- involving the territory of at least one Member State and the territory of a close third country.
- The Programme is open to participation by candidate as well as the EFTA and EEA Member States.
- Modal shift actions, including, the additional modal shift brought about by the development of an existing service, will be eligible for funding under certain specified conditions. Community financial assistance for modal shift actions will be limited to a maximum of 30 % of the total expenditure necessary to achieve the objectives of the action and incurred as a result of the action. Financial assistance will initially be set at EUR 1 for each shift of 500 tonne-kilometres of road freight. It will not be renewable beyond the stipulated maximum period of 38 months. The minimum indicative subsidy threshold per modal shift action will be 250 million tonne-kilometres of modal shift or, in proportion to the indicative amount per euro of subsidy, EUR 500000.
- Catalyst actions will also be eligible for funding under the Programme provided that certain specified conditions are satisfied. Community financial assistance for catalyst actions will be limited to a maximum of 35 % of the total expenditure necessary to achieve the objectives of the action and incurred as a result of the action, including preparatory measures. Community financial assistance for catalyst actions will be granted on the basis of subsidy agreements, with appropriate provisions for steering and monitoring. As a rule, the maximum duration of these agreements will be 50 months. The minimum indicative subsidy threshold per catalyst action will be EUR 1.5 million.
Common learning actions are also eligible for funding under specified conditions. Community financial assistance for common learning actions will be limited to a maximum of 50 % of the total expenditure necessary to achieve the objectives of the action and incurred as a result of the action.
- Community financial assistance for common learning actions shall be granted on the basis of subsidy agreements, with appropriate provisions for steering and monitoring. As a rule,the maximum duration of these agreements will be 26 months. Community financial assistance shall not be renewable beyond the stipulated maximum period of 26 months. The minimum indicative subsidy threshold per common learning action will be EUR 250000.
- The financial framework for the implementation of the Marco Polo Programme, for the period 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2006, is EUR 75 million.
- Up to 5 % of the budget is set aside for accompanying measures and independent evaluation.
- By 31 December 2006 the Commission will send an evaluation report on the results of the Marco Polo Programme.
ENTRY INTO FORCE : 03/08/03.�