EU presidency aims to break Eurovignette deadlock

Publication date: 24 March 2009

EU presidency aims to break Eurovignette deadlock

The EU Czech Presidency is about to delay the inclusion of congestion costs in charges paid by lorries under plans to revise Eurovignette rules on road charging by four years. The Presidency suggested that this compromise would bridge the gap between governments favouring congestion charging and those who fear it will have a disproportionate impact on the cost of road freight transport. It sees tha four-year delay as appropriate also in the context of the current global economic and financial crisis.

The Czech presidency also suggested imposing strict conditions on countries that want to levy such charges. Member states would have to draw up action plans to reduce congestion on roads subject to charging and cancel the charges if the plans fail to deliver. Some member states are opposed to the European commission's proposal to extend the Eurovignette rules to cover the entire European road network, according to the Czech presidency. It therefore suggests restricting the scope to the trans-European transport network (TEN-T) and other motorways.

In a vote earlier this month, the European parliament said revenues generated from road charging must be used by governments to reduce the external costs associated with road transport. The Czech compromise rejects any form of earmarking of revenues but says EU states should state publicly how the money will be used. Governments failed to reach an informal agreement on revised Eurovignette rules in December. The Czech compromise proposal will be discussed by EU transport ministers on 30 March during a debate on the revision of Eurovignette rules. 

“The FIA European Bureau had repeated its concerns about the proposal to include congestion into the costs to be internalised in a media statement released on the 16th of March.”  

(Source: ENDS Europe daily)