No C 194/24 Official Journal of the European Communities 31. 7. 89 
Opinion on the proposal for a Council Regulation (EEC) on the elimination of controls 
performed at the frontiers of Members States in the field of road and inland waterway 
transport (*) 
(89/C 194/10) 
On 16 January 1989, the Council decided to consult the Economic and Social Committee, 
under Article 75 of the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community, on the 
abovementioned proposal. 
The Section for Transport and Communications, which was responsible for preparing the 
Committee's work on the subject, adopted its Opinion on 10 May 1989. The rapporteur was 
Mr Pronk. 
At its 266th plenary session (meeting of 1 June 1989), the Economic and Social Committee 
adopted the following Opinion by a very large majority, with two abstentions. 
1. Introduction 
1.1. The Committee endorses this Commission pro­
posal because it makes a contribution—albeit limited 
—to the establishment of the Internal Market. The 
Committee can understand the Commission's decision, 
despite the modest scope of this Regulation, to opt for 
such a legal instrument rather than for a Directive. 
This Regulation is one of the measures already provided 
for in the Commission's White Paper of June 1985. It 
may also be regarded as a logical consequence of the 
Single Act and is in keeping with the decisions taken 
by the Council on the abolition of frontier formalities 
and controls. As far as the Single Act is concerned, in 
point 2 of the explanatory memorandum to the pro­
posal the Commission quite rightly, in the Committee's 
view, refers to Article 8A of that Act: 
'The Internal Market shall comprise an area without 
internal frontiers in which the free movement of 
goods, persons, services and capital is ensured in 
accordance with the provisions of this Treaty.' 
The Committee considers it essential that the Council's 
decisions be strictly observed and that consequently 
by 1992 the Community's internal frontiers should no 
longer act as a barrier to the international carriage of 
persons or goods. 
2. General comments 
2.1. The Regulation is based on Article 75(1)(c) of 
the Treaty. As already mentioned, it is of limited scope. 
Basically it states that from 1990 any controls in the 
field of road and inland waterway transport, connected 
with the organization of the transport market or road 
safety, shall no longer be carried out at the Com­
munity's internal frontiers. In particular this means 
checks on driving licences and insurance papers. Under 
this Regulation the Member States are even prohibited 
from carrying out these controls at internal frontiers. 
(!) OJ No C 58, 7. 3. 1989, p. 7. The Committee thinks that the significance of the pro­
posal is more in its symbolic value for the Community's 
citizens than in any effect it may have on waiting times 
and delays at borders. The Committee would point out 
that the symbolic value of the abolition of frontier 
checks was one of the considerations—besides political 
and economic—which played a role in the signing of 
the Treaty in 1957. Today too, policies should pay 
greater heed to the image of a 'People's Europe'. 
Against this background the Committee calls upon the 
Commission to push ahead with the reduction of some 
of the other controls which are still carried out at the 
Community's internal frontiers, such as veterinary and 
plant health controls. In the case of inland waterway 
transport, mention may be made here of the frontier 
formalities which have to be completed on payment of 
the guarantees required when gas oil is imported into 
some Member States. 
In view of the foregoing, and with reference to its 
Opinion of 1986 (2), the Committee would take the 
opportunity presented by this proposal to stress that all 
barriers to trade and transport must be removed as part 
of the completion of the Internal Market. In its view 
these barriers also include frontier controls. As long as 
the other frontier controls are maintained, however, 
this proposal will achieve very little and the Committee 
still doubts whether it marks a real breakthrough in 
the elimination of frontier controls by the end of 1992. 
2.2. A second general comment concerns the pro­
posal's social repercussions, which have to be taken 
into account, particularly for customs officials, shippers 
and border police. The Member States employ a con­
siderable number of customs staff for instance. They 
carry out the formalities entailed by the controls, some 
of which will no longer be necessary once the Regu­
lation is adopted by the Member States. Clearly this 
problem will become even more acute after the 'area 
(2) Opinion on the proposal for a Council Directive amending 
Council Directive 83/643/EEC on the facilitation of physical 
inspections and administrative formalities in respect of the 
carriage of goods between Member States (OJ No C 101, 
28. 4. 1986, p. 5). 
31. 7. 89 Official Journal of the European Communities No C 194/25 
without internal frontiers' referred to in Article 8A of 
the Single Act is completely achieved. 
The Committee considers that preparations must be 
made in good time to alleviate as far as possible the 
social repercussions of this Regulation. A social back­
up plan for customs staff who cannot be transferred 
elsewhere and for other persons affected will have to 
be drawn up in consultation with all those concerned. 
The Committee has in mind retraining and further 
training, for which the Member States could call on the 
European Social Fund. 
2.3. Thirdly, the Committee would draw attention 
to the prevalence of repeated random checks within the 
Community. If the controls referred to in the proposal 
are no longer performed at internal frontiers and are 
therefore performed elsewhere in the Community, the 
Committee recommends that this Regulation provide 
for the issue of some kind of certificate after the first 
random check has been carried out. This will prevent 
goods and passenger transport from being subjected to 
repeated random checks. It will also prevent carriers 
from having to bear the further cost of delays caused 
by internal border checks. 
2.4. Finally, the Committee wonders how, in the case 
of the carriage of goods and persons by road, the 
controls on drivers' working hours and periods of rest 
will be carried out after 1992. The Committee fears 
that the removal of existing frontier posts will have 
adverse repercussions—which could distort compe­
tition between firms—for the provisions on drivers' 
hours and rest periods. The Committee considers that 
this problem should be given the attention which it 
merits and calls for a substantial increase in the percent­
age of checks to be carried out on firms' premises in 
accordance with Directive 88/559/EEC of 23 November 
1988 (*) on standard checking procedures for the 
(!) OJNoL325, 29. 11. 1988. 
Done at Brussels, 1 June 1989. implementation of Regulation (EEC) No 3820/85 on 
the harmonization of certain social legislation relating 
to road transport and Regulation (EEC) No 3821/85 
on recording equipment in road transport. 
3. Specific comments 
3.1. Article 1 
The Committee wonders what the consequences of 
this Article will be if a public official ascertains an 
infringement at a former internal frontier of the Com­
munity. This could lead to legal complications. 
3.2. Article 2 
The definition of 'frontier' in this Regulation should 
take account of controls with respect to persons from 
third countries, particularly as regards compliance with 
national and Community provisions. 
3.3. Article 3 
Controls pursuant to Community or national measures 
in the field of road and inland waterway transport will 
at all events still be necessary in the Community, even 
if, as a result of this proposal, they are no longer carried 
out at the Community's internal frontiers. 
3.4. Article 4 
The Committee thinks that it will be very difficult to 
meet the 1 January 1990 deadline for the entry into 
force of this Regulation. 
The Chairman 
of the Economic and Social Committee 
Alberto MASPRONE