Brussels, 14/04/2011 (Agence Europe) - It was with muted enthusiasm that the Greens Group in the European Parliament (EP) met the adoption, on Tuesday 12 April, of the report by Saïd El Khadraoui on the revised Eurovignette directive (see EUROPE 10357). The compromise approved was, the group felt “a step towards possible application of the 'polluter pays' principle to road freight transport” but “contains restrictions that are much too limiting” to “bring significant progress”. “Member states have put the arrangements for application of the polluter pays principle in a such a tight straitjacket, starting with limiting the pollution covered to only air pollutants and noise disturbance, that we might have to wait a long time to see the slightest effect of the directive on the ground”, said Isabelle Durant (Belgium) in a press release. Jean-Paul Besset (France) also regretted what he saw as the too great concessions to member states. “All the pollution from road transport is being suffered and paid for by society as a whole. The new Eurovignette directive goes a small way towards the polluter pays principle, but it has been emptied of all its ambition by member states. It is a missed opportunity for a sustainable future for transport”, he said in the same press release.
For the ALDE Group, Dirk Sterckx said that the report approved by the transport committee on Tuesday was “a realistic text”. He stressed, however, the need for the Eurovignette revenue to be reinvested to help road transport. “Considering that today three quarter of goods in Europe is transported by road we must be realistic in reviewing the legislation around it” Sterckx said in a press release published on Wednesday. “We ask for recognising the principle of 'polluter-pays' by internalising external costs such as air and noise pollution, to ensure that the prices of heavy goods road transport better reflect their real cost to society”, he added.
The most important thing is how the revenues generated by the system are used. The transport committee recommends that the Eurovignette-generated revenues be earmarked so that environmental damage can gradually be reduced. “Applying earmarking to the Eurovignette charges would make it a serious proposal to improve our transport infrastructure and reduce road transport pollution. That is why we believe they must be pumped back to benefit the transport sector and to optimise the transport system”, he stated. (A.By./transl.rt)