Brussels, 02/05/2000 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 10 May, the European Commission is expected to approve a draft regulation aimed at resolving the problem of increasing road traffic through Austria, by using the ecopoint system. This system was set in place in order to stabilise transit across Austria, by using transit permits attributed not according to the number of heavy vehicles but according to the amount of pollution they cause. The problem in Austria is that the reduction of the level of emissions from heavy goods vehicles has meant that a larger number of vehicles have been allowed to transit via this country.
In 1999, 1.7 million heavy vehicles travelled through Austria, which is an increase of 15% compared to 1991, the year used as a reference for the ecopoint system. In addition to the normal rise in trade in Europe, the closure of the Mont Blanc tunnel entailed more traffic through Austria: 30% of the lorries passing through Austria are Italian and 30% German.
According to the terms of the protocol for Austria's membership to the EU, the Commission is committed to presenting a regulation in order to reduce the number of ecopoints when transit through Austria increases beyond a certain threshold. In principle, the ecopoints should be reduced by 20% in the year 2000 in proportion to the rise in traffic recorded in 1999. In practice, the Commission regulation will only be applicable over the second half of the year, which would be tantamount to blocking traffic in Austria for six months. Fourteen Member States voiced opposition to this last eventuality during the last meetings of the "Ecopoint Committee". The compromise proposed by the Commission will be that of spreading out the reduction in ecopoints over several years, which, however, poses a certain number of legal problems.
From a political point of view, the European executive finds itself in difficulty. First of all, it is politically obliged to impose a reduction in transit when the rise in traffic is due to technological improvements in lorries. Also, even if Austria were in favour of a compromise solution, it would be difficult for it to justify to public opinion increasing traffic in Austria in the current political context.
It is expected that the draft Commission regulation will be submitted to the Ecopoint Committee on 15 May. If it wins a majority, the Commission itself could adopt it. Failing this, the draft would be put to the Transport Council in June.