Combined transport of goods between Member States

2017/0290(COD)

The European Parliament adopted by 497 votes to 78 with 52 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 92/106/EEC on the establishment of common rules for certain types of combined transport of goods between Member States.

Parliament’s position adopted in first reading following the ordinary legislative procedure amended the Commission’s proposal as follows:

Purpose

The proposal for the revision of Directive 92/106/EEC aims to make combined transport competitive with road transport and has as its overall aim the establishment of a resource-efficient multimodal transport network and reduction of the negative impact of transport on air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, accidents, noise and congestion.

Scope and definitions

Parliament proposed to better define the vehicles included in the scope of the Directive, making a distinction between vehicles/load units accompanied or not by their drivers.

Each road leg shall not exceed 150 km in distance in the territory of the Union. Member States on whose territory the road leg takes place may allow the distance limit of the road segment to be exceeded for combined rail/road transport operations under clear conditions and according to criteria applicable to the whole Union. Such excess should be duly justified. Member States may reduce the 150 km length of the road leg by up to 50%.

Members specified that the road leg and/or non-road leg or the part thereof taking place out of the territory of the Union should not be considered to be part of the combined transport operation.

Evidence and digital means

Road transport will be considered as forming part of a combined transport operation covered by the Directive only if the carrier can produce information providing clear evidence that such road transport constitutes a road leg of a combined transport operation and if that information is duly transmitted to the haulier carrying the transport operation before the start of the operation. Members specified the list of information that drivers must provide during roadside checks.

In case of road side checks, evidence shall be presented within the duration of such check, and within a maximum time of 45 minutes (or within 5 working days following the check to the competent authority of the Member State concerned)

The evidence may be provided through existing transport documents such as the consignment notes provided for under existing international or national transport conventions, until a standardised form is laid down by the Commission by way of implementing acts. Member States authorities shall be required to accept electronic information related to the evidence.

Member States shall move towards a gradual dematerialisation of documentation, and shall provide for a transitional period until the use of the paper format has been fully abandoned.

Social protection for drivers

In order to ensure the social protection of drivers performing activities in another Member State, Members considered that the provisions on the secondment of drivers laid down in Directive 96/71/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and those on the implementation of those provisions laid down in Directive 2014/67/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council should apply to road legs in all types of operations.

In addition, in the event of cabotage operations, the rules on cabotage transport laid down in Regulation 1072/2009 should apply to the road legs which are part of a domestic combined transport operation.

Measures to support combined transport

Member States should prioritise investment in transhipment terminals to reduce bottlenecks and congestion areas, in particular near urban and sub-urban areas, in order to make it easier to cross natural barriers such as mountain areas, to improve cross-border connections, to reduce harmful airborne emissions and to improve access to and from industrial areas which lack such infrastructure.

Measures may relate to:

- the construction, in areas where no suitable facilities are available within the distance limit), of transport terminals or the installation of transhipment points for combined transport;

- the expansion, in areas where additional terminal capacity is needed, of existing terminals or the installation of additional transhipment points and, following an assessment of the economic impacts showing that the market would not be negatively affected and that new terminals are necessary, and provided that environmental concerns have been taken into account, the construction of new terminals for combined transport;

By 31 December 2021, Member States shall take additional measures of an economic and legislative nature , to improve the competitiveness of combined transport operations as compared to equivalent alternative road transport operations, in particular with a view to reducing the time and costs involved in transhipment operations .

Economic support measures may include, inter alia:

- the reduction of certain taxes or transport fees, grants for intermodal load units effectively transported in combined transport operations, or the partial reimbursement of transhipments cost;

- fostering the integration of connected systems and the automation of operations as well as investment in digital logistics, innovative freight handling systems information and communications technologies and intelligent transport systems;

- boosting the environmental performance, efficiency and sustainability of combined transport by encouraging the use of clean or low-emission vehicles and alternative fuels.

Measures to support combined transport operations could benefit from some flexibility to encourage the use of State aid.

Evaluation and monitoring

The Commission shall be responsible for the proper implementation of the Directive and for achieving the objective of developing combined transport EU-wide by 2030 and 2050. To that end, it shall regularly assess progress in increasing the share of combined transport in each Member State, on the basis of the information provided by the Member States, and should, if necessary, present a proposal to amend to the Directive with a view to achieving that Union-wide objective.