Brussels, 27/03/2002 (Agence Europe) - Transport Ministers Jean-Claude Gayssot (France) and Pietro Lunardi (Italy) reached an agreement, on Tuesday, for gradually opening up the Mont-Blanc tunnel to heavy goods vehicles. Italy finally agreed to reopening in three stages by the summer, beginning with the opening to HGV of under 19 tonnes "in the next few days". Both parties have still to fix the dates for these stages. Heavy goods traffic must, however, remain less than 2,500/2,600 perr day, the rate recorded before the tunnel was closed three years ago, said the French minister. The meeting took place on the sidelines of the Transport Council, which held a highly complex debate on the issue of road transit through the Alps in general, said the Council president, Francisco Alvarez-Cascos. Austria called for an agreement to be found by June on extending the Ecopoint transit system. "It is better to have a good agreement than to have an agreement in June", the Spanish minister replied.