The second meeting of interinstitutional negotiations ('trilogues') between representatives of the European Parliament and the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union on Tuesday 5 February on the revision of Directive (2008/96/EC) on road infrastructure safety management failed to reach a political agreement.
This trilogue followed a first meeting between the parties on 23 January (see EUROPE 12179). These discussions echo the European Commission's proposal presented last May as part of the third ‘mobility’ package (see EUROPE 12022), with the Council and Parliament adopting their negotiating positions in December and January respectively (see EUROPE 12151, 12169).
From our information, despite an understanding by each institution of the other's position, it would appear that no significant progress has been made on the main political points. The Parliament and the Council remain committed to their positions.
Thus, it would seem that the notion of primary road still needs to be clearly defined, with the Council and the Parliament having different positions on the matter.
Similarly, the question of the scope of the Directive must be resolved, but the extension of the scope of the current text to bridges and tunnels, as requested by the Parliament, should not be included in the body of the revised Directive. A reference in the recitals of principle should nevertheless appear.
In addition, the European Parliament would like the provisions on road signs to be more binding than the EU Council wishes. Nor has the binding nature of the annexes on road network evaluations and inspections, which the Parliament wanted but not the Council, been agreed upon between the two institutions.
A meeting at the technical level is scheduled for Friday, 8 February. The next political trilogue, which both sides hope will be conclusive, will take place on 21 February. The problematic points mentioned above will then have to be addressed. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)