Brussels, 24/03/2014 (Agence Europe) - Ports, ship-owners and container terminals want the EU to make it easier for 45-foot containers to be used in road transport (they are already commonly used for shipping) and criticise the approach taken by MEPs on the European Parliament's transport and tourism committee (TRAN) in its vote on changing lorry sizes and weights at the 18 March committee meeting.
Three European associations (ECSA, EPSO and FEPORT) have sent a letter to member states' representatives in Brussels on 20 March arguing for the European Commission's initial proposal be retained in the European transport ministers' general negotiating position, to be decided upon in June. This would make it easier for 15-cm longer lorries to carry 45-foot containers and be allowed to cross all borders in the EU as part of multimodal transport within a 300-kilometre radius of the port at which the containers arrived in the EU. TRAN changed this to 150 kilometres, in line with the EU directive on combined transport. Ports, ship-owners and container terminals hope the EP will change its position when it adopts the draft directive in plenary in April.
The three associations argue that, in order to support effective intermodal transport and more sustainable mobility, longer lorries carrying shipping containers should not be restricted in terms of distance. (MD)