The European Parliament Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) published a Working Document compiling a bundle of recommendations to improve the Combined Transport Directive, part of the Greening Freight Package. According to the report, the new definition of combined transport still exhales uncertainty, possibly hindering the competitiveness of this modality.
The new definition of combined transport, as per the current draft of the Directive, includes that “combined transport operation shall reduce by at least 40 per cent external costs compared to the alternative road unimodal transport operation”. However, the TRAN report signed by Massimiliano Salini pointed out that the calculation method to reach this 40 per cent is still too vague. One of the main points raised is that it is not clear which baseline concerning unimodal transport will be combined transport operations compared to.
Moreover, Salini’s report underlined that the EU’s Handbook on the external costs of transport will soon be revised. New definitions and criteria might thus add further confusion for operators. The TRAN Committee is therefore urging that the revision of the Handbook stays consistent with “new challenges to the European market and to technological development”. One of the solutions mentioned in the report is that data on external costs shall be provided for all modes of transport. Moreover, the European Commission should keep an open line of communication with the stakeholders involved to make sure that policies and industry move at the same pace.
The current obstacles
Other than expressing concerns regarding the definition of combined transport, the TRAN report also identified various obstacles that threaten its competitiveness. For example, only 13 out of 27 EU Member States collect data specifically for combined transport operations. Additionally, there still are many differences between countries when it comes to available infrastructure and financing support from the European Union. The main challenges listed by the report include “transshipment costs, lack of suitable terminals and service offers in terminals, delays and longer transit times and the cost of doorto-door operations”.
Possible solutions
The report also proposes some measures that could help boost the competitiveness of combined transport and encourage operators to use such a modality. The current definition, as mentioned, seems to be more of a hurdle than a facilitator. “It should indeed be preferable to provide simpler conditions to make operations eligible for incentives and to avoid any administrative and operational burden for intermodal operators”, the report stated. For instance, the TRAN committee think that there should be additional incentives for operations that ensure the reduction of external costs by more than 40 per cent.
Moreover, EU Member States should adopt national policy frameworks and measures to facilitate the use of combined transport to create more uniformity. These measures shall further reduce operational costs by 10 per cent within seven and a half years from the entry into force of the Directive. On the other hand, it is not a given that every Member State can realistically achieve such a number. The report also stated that there should be more details available on how to calculate the 10 per cent threshold and that the Commission should provide recommendations on possible measures.
What are the positives?
Finally, it needs to be noted that the report identified a few positives as well. First and foremost, the TRAN Committee welcomed the eFTI initiative, aimed at making freight documents digital. However, they pointed out that the eFTI platform must be launched only when “fully available and operational in Europe”. Another aspect of the Combined Transport Directive that was pleasantly evaluated by the TRAN Committee is the exemptions from weekend, night and holiday driving bans applying to heavy goods vehicles. Often, these vehicles cannot travel during these specific periods. However, this might slow down or halt combined transport operations. With the ban exemption, at least this issue seems to be resolved.
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