In a press release issued on Tuesday 29 October, the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) urged the Member States within the Council of the European Union “to maintain an ambitious outlook for Combined Transport”.
The definition of combined transport has divided the Member States (see EUROPE 13496/5). The CER believes that it should be based on the current definition of combined transport and avoid solutions that favour major road routes. “Railways, the most energy-efficient mode of land transport, offer tailored solutions for various loading units across the EU”, argues the CER.
It believes that these tailor-made solutions must remain accessible to operators, enabling them to reach the nearest rail terminal suited to the specific loading unit they wish to transport, whether it be a container, swap body, semi-trailer or whole vehicle.
The CER is also concerned about the imbalance between this proposal and the related proposal on weights and dimensions for road transport (see EUROPE 13499/19), “which puts in place immediate incentives at EU level that strengthen the competitiveness of road transport”. (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)