The controversy over ‘megatrucks’, has entered a new phase after a European Commissioner gave the green light to cross-border movements of 25-metre vehicles.
In a letter from EC Vice-President Siim Kallas to the Brian Simpson, Chairman of the Transport and Tourism Committee of the European Parliament, Kallas said that movements of the longer trucks between consenting EU member states is allowed.
The committee said, however, that it may raise a legal challenge to the Comissioner’s decision, saying Kallas was acting beyond his powers.
The dispute will be viewed by some as an attempt by parliamentarians to wrest more decision-making powers from the unelected commsissioners, rather than a dispute over the subject matter.
Currently, longer trucks are used widely in Scandanavia parts of Germany and in major Dutch trials but have seen limited use elsewhere due to regulatory uncertainty and political opposition.
Newly-elected politicians in the German states of Schleswig-Holstein and North Rhine-Westphalia have recently ruled out participation in trials of longer vehichles while the UK is conducting its own trials of large semi-trailer combinations.
The head of international affairs at TLN, the Dutch transport operators trade body expressed disappointment at the spat but said that adoption of the longer trucks is “beyond the point of no return”
Representatives for European shippers, meanwhile, welcomed the EC’s clarification.
“The cross-border transport of EMS vehicles supports our industry’s efforts to optimise their logistics operations and reduce the impact on the environments,” said Nicolette van der Jagt, Director General of the European Organisation for Forwarding and Logistics (CLECAT).
“Users of freight transport services will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder on this. The potential increased use of EMS vehicles will also provide additional efficiency in multimodal operations which are likely to greatly benefit from these combinations that are perfectly suited for intermodal transport.”
As yet, the recent developments do not affect the UK where the government’s Department for Transport (DfT) is conducting its own trials of longer semi-trailer combinations.
Voicing opposition to UK adoption of longer trucks, Philippa Edmunds, Freight on Rail manager, said: “The Commission is supposed to implement existing laws, not make new ones.
“Instead of pursuing this undemocratic change to the existing policy to allow cross border traffic of mega trucks, the Commission should evaluate the road safety, congestion and pollution implications of mega trucks and let Parliament and Transport ministers make the decision in the normal democratic way.”
source, lloydsloadinglist
