The announcement has been long awaited. Finally, the Commission took Germany to the Court of Justice of the EU on Thursday 29 September over its plan to introduce a road toll system (the notorious PKW-Maut project), because it considers that the measures planned are discriminatory.
Alexander Dobrindt, the German minister for transport, did not appear concerned by the announcement and stated: "Finally, the Commission has taken the next step". He added that "this is good news" because reaching a decision had taken too much time. He indicated that he was confident that the German project complied with European law and would be endorsed by the Court. Implementation of the draft law is currently pending in Germany, with the government awaiting a ruling from the Court.
The Commission criticised the German project on two counts. Firstly, the German road vehicle tariff system, in the guise of a vignette and a taxation reduction mechanism applicable to vehicles registered in Germany, for an amount corresponding to that of the cost of the vignette, was deemed non-compliant with the non-discrimination principle on the basis of nationality (Articles 18 and 45 of TFEU). This mechanism would mean a road charge exemption for Germans, the Commission explains. Secondly, it considers that the price of a short-term vignette (less than a year) is primarily aimed at foreign users for specific journeys and is "disproportionate".
The Commission began procedures in June 2015 (see EUROPE 11338) and sent Berlin a reasoned opinion in April 2016 (see EUROPE 11543).
As regards road charges, the Commission proposed, as part of its European mobility strategy, a low emissions tarification system based on distance, according to the "polluter pays" principle and alongside this is currently developing an interoperable electronic payment system (see EUROPE 11603). (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)