The Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union submitted to national delegations on Thursday 6 June a third draft compromise, of which EUROPE was copied, on the revision of Directive 1999/62/EC on road infrastructure user charges, which does not change in substance from the last text detailed in our columns (see EUROPE 12239/25).
It should be noted that this new draft compromise is dated the day of last week's Transport Council meeting, during which EU Transport Ministers approved a progress report presented by Bucharest (see EUROPE 12270/7, 12258/4). However, this new text was not discussed at this meeting.
There are therefore few significant changes to note compared to the last text tabled last April. However, some clarifications should be noted regarding the protection of concession contracts currently in force, in order to respond to the request of some States.
Under the provisions of the future directive, Bucharest also proposes that Member States may provide for reduced infrastructure charges or user charges, as well as exclude certain sections of the road network with little traffic from the scope of the text, “in sparsely populated areas”.
In addition, the current monthly, bimonthly, weekly and ten-day rates of user charges (‘vignette’ type) compared to the annual rates for heavy duty and light duty vehicles are the same as those envisaged by the Commission in its proposal (see EUROPE 11799/6).
It is also suggested here that an optional mark-up, as proposed by the Commission, to infrastructure charges (such as tolls) levied on specific road sections which are regularly congested or whose use is harmful to the environment, cannot be introduced on roads subject to a congestion charge. In the last draft compromise, axles subject to an external-cost charge were also excluded.
For the rest, the recommendations remain substantially the same as those made in the second draft compromise, in particular as regards the end of time-based user charges for heavy duty vehicles, minibuses and light duty vehicles. This text will be examined by the national experts of the EU Council's working party on ‘land transport’ on Wednesday 12 June. It will be up to the future Finnish Presidency of the Council to try to reach a political agreement (‘general approach’) between the various national delegations in the next half-year period.
The European Parliament, for its part, adopted its position at first reading on this text last October (see EUROPE 12125/2). (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)