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Vol.1981/0176

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COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(81)577 final
Brussels/19October1981
REPORTFROMTHECOMMISSION TOTHECOUNCIL
ontheimplementation oftheCouncilDirectiveof17February1973/
asamendedbytheCouncilDirectiveof19December1978/onthe
establishment ofcommonrulesforcertaintypesofcombined
road/railcarriageofgoodsbetweenMemberStates
/:•••
COM(81)577final'"
^<r..

COMMISSION CQMMUNI CA.TIONTOTHE COUNCIL
Report ontheimplementation oftheCouncil Directive of17February 1975 ,
asamended "bytheCouncil Dire „veof19December 1978 ,onthe
establishment ofcommon rules forcertain types ofcombined road/rail
carriage ofgoods between Member States .
(OJL48of22February 1975 ,?P«31and32,andOJL5of
9January 1979 .P*33)
1,Article 7of "the1975 Directive requires theCommission toreport
totheCouncil every twoyears ontheimplementation oftheDirective
with aview todeveloping this system forthebenefit ofalltypes of
combined road/rail carriage within theCommunity .
This report covers theimplementation oftheDirective in1978 and1979 *
2.TheCommission 'sdepartments consulted theMember States andthe
professional organizations concerned ,namely :
theGroup ofNine Railways ;
theUnion International des Sociétés deTransport combine Rail-Route
(UIRR ;:
theIRUliaison committees forown-account transport andtransport
forhire orreward ;
theEuropean Liaison Committee ofCommon Market Forwarding Agents
(CLECAT ):
theSociété Internationale pouf leTransport parTranscontainers
(ïntercontainer ):
andother national organizations .

-2-
TheCommissionfindsthattheCouncil's1975Directive,inrequiring
certaincombinedroad/railtransportoperationstoToefreedfrom
allquotaandauthorization systemshascontributedsignificantly to
theexpansionofthistypeoftraffic# •
Thesimilarliberalization measuresprovidedforinthe1978
Directive,concerningthecarriagebyrailofcontainersof20feet
andoverandswapbodieswithoutsupports,expireon31December1981,
TheCommissionhasfound,fromcarefulexaminationduringthetrial
period,thatthisparticulartypeoftrafficissteadilyincreasing ^
andisconvincedthatitsharmoniousdevelopmentispossible.

REPORT
ontheimplementation oftheCouncilDirectiveof
17February1975»as-nded"bytheCouncilDirective
of19December1978,ontheestablishment ofcommon
rulesforcertaintypesofcombinedroad/rail
carriageofgoods "betweenMemberStates,
(OJL48of22February1975»PP*31and32,andL5<5f9January1979»P*33)
(CommissionCommunication totheCouncil)

1»Introduction .
■ N
TheCouncilDirectiveof17February19»75(75/130/EEC)oncertaintypes
ofcombinedroad/railcarriageofgoods"betweenMemberStatesestablishes
camrionrulesdesignedtofreesuchtransportoperationsfromall
quantitativerestrictions (quotaarrangements )andtoabolishvarious
administrative restrictions (authorizations ).
TheamendingDirectiveof19December1978(79/5/EEC)isdesignedto
makethecommonrulespermanent-originallytheyweretoexpireon
31December1978-andtoaltercertainaspects,e.g.byextendingthe
scopeoftheDirectivetotransportoperationsusingcontainersof
twentyfeetormoreandswapbodieswithoutsupports.
Article7fasamended,invitestheCommissiontoreporttotheCouncil
everytwoyearsontheimplementation oftheDirectivewithaviewto
developingthissystemforthebenefitofalltypesofcombinedroad/rail
carriagewithintheCommunity.
ThepurposeofthisreportistoenabletheCommissiontofulfilthat
task,and,specifically,toprovideinformationoncombinedroad/rail
traffic(governedbythepermanentcommonrules)andtrafficinvolving
containersoftwentyfeetormoreandswapbodieswithoutsupports
(governedbycommonruleswhichexpireon31December1981).
2.Implementation oftheDirective
Article2oftheamendingDirectivecallsonthe"MemberStatestotake
theadditionalmeasuresinordertocomplywiththeDirectivebefore
1Julylp'7''andtoinformtheCommissionthereof.
Generallyspeaking,theMemberStateshavetriedtoimplementthe
Directiveinaneffectivemaimer,althoughtheneedtomakecertain
technical'andlegaladjustmentshascausedsomedelay.

3.Generalremarksonthevarioust-ofcombinedtransport
Combinedtransportcowrstwomajor*areasofactivity:
(a)"Piggy-back"transport:thisiscarriedoutbycommercialcompanies
specializing intherailtransportoflorries,semi-trailers,roadtrainsand
swapbodies.Itrequirestechnicalco-operation betweenroadandrail.
inthissector,therolling-road "technique(anewde/elopmentinpiggy-back
transport)hashithertobeenlittleused,andthenonlyoncertaininternal
transportlinks.In1981alarge-scaleexperimentwillbeheldwhichwill
mobilizeinterns.!convoysof200wagons,andinternational convoys01about
100wagons,servingaconsiderable numberoflines.
Theresultsofthesetrialswillbecomecleareratthebeginningof1982.
(b)Mostcontainertransportoperationsarecarriedoutbyajointinternational
subsidiaryoftherailwaycompanies,Intercontainer ,withintheframeworkof
competition betweenroadandrail.
Theco-founders havedelegatedthesellingoninternational containerfreight
services,andallcustomerliaisonactivities ,toIntercontainer .Among
thevariousreasonsforitssuccessare:
ii)asimplechargingsystemwithaunitcarriagecharge(per20,30or
40feet)leviedirrespective ofthetypeofgoodscarried;
(ii)anetworkwhichcoversthewholeoftheEuropeanmainland;the
UnitedKingdomandIrelandrequireadifferenttypeofservice,performed
eitherbytherailwaycompaniesortheirsubsidiaries ,andinvolvingthe
secondaryrailandancillaryservicesbeforeorafterthistypeof
transportoperation ;

-3-
(iii )itsownrolling stock :this enables ittocarry some ofitstraffic
onits ownwaggons ; • '
(iv)anincreasingly diversified service consisting ofspecial trains and
several hundred terminals throughout Europe (suitably equipped for
transferring containers ).
4«Development ofcombined transport traffic
4.1 .Piggy-back traffic ^"
Thefigures supplied bythevarious piggy-back companies aregrouped together
inTable 1intheAnnex .They show thedevelopment oftherespective types
ofpiggy-back transport anddistinguish between thedifferent methods of
carrying goods byrail :semi-trailers ,swap bodies androad trains .They
cover 1978 and1979 *
Thefollowing table shows howthegross traffic (both national andinternational )
has developed .
TOTAL PIGGY-BACK TRAFFIC 2 . ■ .
1977 1978 1979
Gross tonnes carried 5923000 7089000 - 8386000
Index 100 120 142
Thedata include international traffic ,which amounted to19i°ofthetotal
»
gross in1977 f22;,in1978 and24%in1979 *
Thepiggy-back companies® total gross traffic was20%upin1978 ,and42/»up
in1979 ,compared with the' -1977 figure .
Excluding container traffic .
^Source :UIRR .

-4-
4.2 Development ofcontainer ands..t.o body traffic
Since theDirective 'sprovisions concerning theliberalization oftransport
bycontainer ^.ndswap bodies arewliduntil 31December 1981 ,itisworth
looking athowthis traffic fared in1978 and1979 * '
Thefigures below show howIntercontainer 'straffic evolved during theperiod
1977-79 -; *-
- ' " . ' ' ' (
4.2.1 CONTAINER TRAFFIC - - .'
197.7 1978 1979 ,
Gross tonnes transported
(international traffic )»500700057070006944000.
Index : 100'114 . 139
The ,figures also include carriage byswap bodies ,-anestimate 'ofwhich is
given inTable 2intheAnnex .Intercontainer' sactivity grew considerably
during 1980 ;theresult ^forthat year (7507900gross tonnes transported )
are fylupon1979 and50$upon1977 *
Expressed InTEU (twenty-foot equivalent units ),thetotal volume ofthe
company 'sladen andunladen container traffic reached 811500TEU ,the ,first
time the 800 000mark has been exceeded . '
'The Commission has noinformation asregards *-container -transport byfirms .
other than Intercontainer . ' '■
4.2.2 SWAP B0DY TRAFFIC
,1977 1978 1979
2Number ofinternational consignments 9187 12742 :19673
Index : I00 •139 •-.214
.Theabove figures refer totraffic movements bythepiggy-back companies :
Kombiverkehr ,TRW,Novatrans ,Perpac ,Trailstar andHupac .
Thenumber ofswap-body consignments in1978 wasup39%i andin1979
114$ ,compared with 1977 »
Source :Intercontainer .
^Source :UIRR .
» -1

-5-
5«Theeffectoftheliberalization measuresoncontainertraffic
I
Inorder -toassesstheeffectofitsliberalization measuresoncontainerand
swap-bodytraffic;theCommissionhasaskedcertainroadtransportandother
operatorsdirectlyaffectedfortheirviews.
Itwouldseemthatpotentialcustomersarenotlosinginterestinintermodal
transporttechniquesdespitethe«unfavourable economicsituation.
Road"hauliers'accesstocontainertransporthasbeenfacilitated bythe
applicationoftheCommunityprovisions,andithasbeenpossibletodoaway
withacertainamountofadministrative bureaucracy .Combinedtransport
usingcontainershasbeenabletoattractasignificant proportionofextra
consignments inaperiodwhenapplications forroad-transport authorizations
arehigh.Therearemanyfactors(notablypricingandoperational
considerations )whichdeteminetheuser'schoice,however.
*
6.FurtheractionatnationalandCommunitylevel
InitsCommunication of"15December1977,theCommissiondrewtheCouncil's
attentiontotheadvisability ofactiontodevelopcombinedtransport.
Themeritsofpiggy-backtransport,whichcombinesthevariousadvantagesof
roadtransport(e.g.theflexibilityofdoor-to-doorservices)withthoseof
rail(regularityofservice,greatersafety,fastnightjourneys,andsocial
-andenvironmental benefits)werepointedout.
1

Containers have certain obvious adva :. ;ges :notonly arethey suitable for
continental road and rail "traffic but they canalso carry intercontinental
airandseafreight .They can e ..befully integrated into aphysical
distribution system ,thereby reducing thenumber ofhandling -andpackaging
operations andhelping tocutoverall distribution costs .
Astoswap bodies ,theCommission takes theview that they help tosave
energy ,since less "dead weight "iscarried byrail ,and overall transport -
costs can therefore becut .
Furthermore ,theinclusion ofswap bodies and containers intheliberalization
measures forterminal road journies may increase thevolume offreight
transported byrail and facilitate the formation ofwhole train loads for
combined transport (with obvious advantages interms ofcost andspeed ).
7.Thedevelopment ofcombined transport ,however ,isconfronted with mjy
problems -especially technical andinfrastructure problems ,such asthe
diversity ofrail androad equipment ,theinadequancy ofthetraffic arteries
andpiggy-back handling centres .Ontheeconomic and financial front ,some
road operators cannot usepiggy-back transport since they lack adequate
logistics support ,proven management structures andacommercial presence
atboth ends oftheroute .Specifically financial problems include the
■iale ofroad and rail investment required .Finally ,rates must be
competitive inrelation toconventional road haulage and whole waggon load
orcontainer rail .transport .
8.TheCommission believes that theliberalization measures already adopted "*"
provide aneffective way ofremoving certain obstacles tothedevelopment of
combined transport .
Council Directive of17February 1975 »asamended bytheCouncil Directive
of19December 1978 ,ontheestablishment ofcommon rules forcertain types
ofroad/rail carriage ofgoods between Member States (OJL48of22Feburary 1975 »
pp31and32,andOJL5of9January 1979 ,p.33).

AdoptionbytheCounciloftheproposalswhichtheCommissionsubmittedin
1980^wouldcertainlyhelp,therefore,todevelopthistechniqueandremove
•currentobstaclestotheexpansionofintermodaltransport.
TheCommissionalsobelievesthat,sofar,nomajordrawbackshaveresulted
frombringingcontainers andswapbodieswithinthescopeoftheDirective .
Onthecontrary,thismeasure,whichwasadoptedonanexperimental basis,
hasproved(admittedlywithinthelimitsoftheexperiment)tobeuseful,
anddeservestobeadoptedpermanently atCommunitylevel.
OJC351of31December1980.

I§blê1 Annex
DEVELOPMENT OFCOMBINED ROAD/RAILTRAFFIC
(■SEMI-TRAILERS /SWAPBODIESANDROADTRAINS)
(Numbersofconsignments )
NOVATRANS
Semi-trailers
Swapbodies
Roadtrains
UFR(smallbodies)1977 1978 1979
International *National»ffInternational National' International National
20.114' 69.098
6.303 5.821
9.942' ;
24.499 72.255
7.316 8.701
6.47426.857 73.156
9.865 ·19.332
'5.340
TOTAL 26.417 84.861 31.815 87.430 36.722 97.'828
KOMBIVERKEHR
Semi-trailers
Swapbodies
Roadtrains5.920 16.600
1.462 ,104.900
1.128 5.8008.098 24.100
2.487 120.900
2.000 5.30012.694 26.800
4.720 164.100
2.951 λ600
TOTAL 8.510 127.300 *12.585 150.300 20.365 194.500
HExportsonly.

i :
HUPAC
Semi-traiLers
Swapbodies
Roadtrains1977 1978 1979
International *National International National* *International National
5.7:4 ..4.950
1.4:2 '.
17.650
«7.616 5.526
1.614
i. 20.52710.352 -5.068
2.935 283
21.315
;TOTAL 7.206 22.600 9.230 26.053 13.287 26.666
1FERPAC
Semi-trailerá
!Swapbodiès
Roadtrains
UFR6361.378
459
459
' *2.234""
1.300 -
478
TOTAL 636 2.296 4.012
;TRAILSTAR
3.135 4.539 5.218Semi-trailêrs
Swapbodies
Roadtrains
TOTAL 3.135 4.539 5.218
T.R.W.
5.079 6.579
8668.109
853Semi-trailers
Swapbodies
Roadtrains
TOTAL 5.079 7.445 8.962
Exportsonly.

'■
Table2--
Annex
CONTAINERTRANSPORT 1'
1977 '- 1978 1979
Laden Unladen Total Laden."Unladen Total Laden Unladen Total
(a)Totaltrafficinlarge
containers andswapbodies ..·"* J
bodies/
Numberofunits 303.353157.723-461.076 342.592 186.2-30 528.822 405.076 201.154 606.230
Grosstonnesmoved 5.007.118 5.706.965 6.943.643
Averagedistanceof
carriage(km), 805■-704 772 843 697 794 818 673 772
(b)Estimated swapbody•
traffic(figuresalready
includedinabovedata)
Numberofunits 20.2ÖÖ 1.000 -21.200 19.600-90020.50036.800 3.200 40.000
Grosstonnesmoved –404.700 391.200 735.200
1