Brussels, 09/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission should adopt a cross-cutting approach in the event that it should revise the directive on combined transport, conclude several European associations representing the interests of freight transport (CER, EBU, EFIP, EIA, ERFA, UIP, UIRR).
Combined transport brings together the advantages of rail, road, inland waterways and short-sea shipping to transport goods in Europe. The directive which regulates transport of this kind dates back to 1992 and may be up for revision by the new European Commission (the working plan will be unveiled next week). A public consultation on this subject was held this summer, the results of which have now been made public.
A new definition of combined transport was introduced in the revision of the directive on the weights and dimensions of lorries (which should not be retained during the inter-institutional negotiations on the subject). In this regard, the European intermodal or combined transport associations recommend that the Executive avoid the 'dispersion' of defining terminology and other rules pertaining to more than one mode of transport in 'unrelated' pieces of legislation. This means that the work should be carried out within this directive, the associations argue. They also stress that although cooperation between the various modes of transport and carriers may appear complex, it results in benefits in terms of energy efficiency, pollution and even road safety. Support for this type of transport can also be ensured by other European policies, such as the plans for the trans-European transport network plans and the Connecting Europe Facility, as well as information and communication technology. (MD)