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EU Commission publishes combined transport plan

[ November 10, 2023   //   ]

The European Commission adopted a new proposal on combined transport on 7 November. It updates the current Combined Transport Directive and completes the Greening Freight Package, the bulk of which was adopted in July 2023.

The new version of the directive – last revised in 1992 – refocuses support on operations that reduce ‘negative externalities’ by at least 40% compared to road-only operations. Digital platforms established under the electronic freight transport information Regulation will provide a calculation tool allowing transport organisers to prove whether their operation is eligible for support.

The proposal also introduces an exemption from temporary driving bans, such as weekend driving bans for combined transport to improve the use of terminal and other infrastructure capacity by allowing trucks carrying out the short feeder legs to reach terminals as and when they need to, based on train, barge or ship departure times.

The proposal sets Member States a competitiveness target to reduce by at least 10% the average door-to-door cost of combined transport operations within 7 years, and requires them to put in place the policies needed to achieve this. A new EU gateway for intermodal transport information will provide links to all Member States’ national policy frameworks, as well as practical information on measures in place, increasing the transparency of national measures.

The proposal will now be considered by the European Parliament and the Council.

European freight forwarders association Clecat welcomed the new proposal. Director general Nicolette van der Jagt, said it was a good starting point to encourage the use of combined transport. More use of rail, inland waterways and maritime transport would reduce greenhouse gas emissions and was important to further decarbonise freight transport.

Clecat noted that the proposal includes some important elements its members have been calling for. These included clarification of the definition of an intermodal transport operation, clearly stating that road transport can be used in both the first and last leg, and removing the concept of nearest suitable loading/unloading station. The current definition is outdated and creates barriers to the effective operation of combined transport, it said.

It also extends the scope of the Directive to all intermodal operations in the EU, encompassing cross-border and national transport operations.

Empty containers used for an intermodal transport operation, which are covered by the transport contract of the CT operation, are considered an integral part of said operation, thus benefiting from support measures and reflecting a recent European Court of Justice ECJ ruling.

It also welcomed the fact that the proposed directive retains the current exemption from cabotage rules for the road legs of combined transport operations.

The Commission mandates Member States to draw up national policy frameworks to assess measures in support of combined transport operations in their territory and aim for a 10% cost reduction of such operations within 7.5 years “which is interesting, but possibly not sufficiently ambitious”, Clecat concluded.

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