Brussels, 24/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 24 September, the EU Council of Ministers adopted without debate the regulations that make up the road transport package: - the regulation on common rules for access to the international road haulage market; - the regulation on common rules for access to the international market for coach and bus services; - and the regulation establishing common rules concerning the conditions to be complied with to pursue the occupation of road transport operator. Adoption of these texts by the Council (and amendments by the European Parliament) come after the agreement concluded with the EP in second reading in March, on the whole of the package that establishes, among other things, the rules on road cabotage and on resting/driving time for bus and coach drivers (EUROPE 9870).
The Italian delegation abstained during the vote (it underlines that the regulation on goods cabotage is in some ways “unsatisfactory”), while the Austrian delegation voted against the package. The United Kingdom accepted the new cabotage rules on the basis that these would be balanced by new safety enforcement provisions in the “access to the occupation” regulation. It explains that this would, for example, make it possible “to report on hauliers who commit infringements in a host country to their home country so that appropriate action is taken against them”. The British delegation also criticised the “reversal of agreed commitments in respect of common implementation dates given from the outset of the negotiations”. (A.By./transl.jl)