Another blow to road transport is the protest of the transporters' association
Last week, the European Commission submitted a proposal for a Council regulation that would allow the Commission to exempt certain types of state aid to rail, inland waterway and multimodal transport from the obligation of prior notification. According to EU rules, all state aid must be notified to and approved by the European Commission. The new proposal is aimed at the development of environmentally friendly transport.
"We welcomed the Commission's proposal to simplify state aid procedures for the decarbonization of transport and the inclusion of multimodal transportation, including intermodal. However, it would be a mistake to exclude road transport from the system of subsidies aimed at supporting the "green" transformation of the entire transport sector", commented Raluka Marian, director of relations with the EU at IRU.
"Decarbonization without investments specifically in road transport is unpromising, given that road transport accounts for more than 45 percent of the entire transport sector to the EU. All types of transport need incentives if the EU wants to achieve its goals set out in the "Green Pact", added Marian.
The IRU emphasizes that an exception to the offer of only road transport in exchange for the inclusion of intermodal transport will lead to the fact that some carriers will receive preferences for participating in operations combining several modes of transport.
The European Commission's proposal is another blow to road transport. Last month, the European Parliament adopted the so-called "Fit for 55" package, a set of rules aimed at making the European Union climate neutral by 2050. In 2030, CO2 emissions must be reduced by 55 percent. against the level of 1990
In addition, from 2035, new cars running on conventional fuel will not be sold in the EU. In addition, the transport sector should be included in the emissions trading scheme. The industry is protesting the latter provision, arguing that the introduction of this rule without adequate development of charging and refueling infrastructure for alternative fuels will lead to increased transport costs.
At the end of June, transport ministers within the EU Council agreed on a common position on transport regulations. The EU Council's proposal is to introduce an emissions trading scheme from 2028 (and not from 2025, as Parliament wants). In addition, the scheme should cover all road users, not just commercial vehicles, as the MEPs decided. The CO2 tax will be included in the price of fuel, as proposed by the Council.
Now the Fit for 55 package will be discussed in the so-called Trialogue between representatives of the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council of the European Union.