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DOCUMENTS "COM"
COM(81)406
Vol.1981/0126

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COMMISSION OFTHE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(81)406 final
11September 1981
» m
L.^ ~J fLO\
K' ♦^S\-o|
140 >:jrj
'•>3r'-A * ./ *
Report from the
Commission tothe Council
onproblems arising from thetransit ofgoods toorfrom the Community
through certain non-member countries
COM (81)406 final

CONTENTS
Page
I. Introduction 1
II.Analysis ofthetransit situation 5
A.Major routes 5
B. Transit and international trade 8
C.>Consequences oftheincrease intransit traffic
for countries oftransit 9
D.Measures taken bycountries oftransit (oropen
tothem)to deal with theinconvenience and
hazards oftransit traffic 11
E. Interests ofthe "transiting "countries 12
III .Goals with regard totransit :ways ofachieving them 14
Infrastructure 15
Organization ofmarkets 17
Sea transport 20
Infrastructure charging 21
Weights and dimensions ofvehicles 23
Working conditions inroad transport 23
Establishing rail tariffs 24
Cooperation between railways 24
Facilitation atfrontiers 25
External relations . 25
IV.ACTION NEEDED 27
Infrastructure 27 •
Organization ofmarkets 27
Sea transport 28
Infrastructure charging 28
Weights and dimensions ofvehicles 29'
Working conditions inroad transport 29
Establishing rail tariffs , 29
Cooperation between railways 29
Facilitation atfrontiers 30
External relations 30
V. Conclusions . " 31
Annex I:Statistical tables 32
Annex II:Community legislation andproposals for * 39
legislation affecting transit operations
Annex insPart ofthedebate ofthe EPon ■43
24September 1979 >
Annex IV:Map ..

Reportonproblemsarisingfromthetransitofgoodstoorfromthe
Communitythroughcertainnon-membercountries .
INTRODUCTION
1.Asitsmeetingof12June1978andagainstabackgroundofdiscussions
ontheintroduction ofaroadtaxinAustria,theCouncil(Ministersof
Transport)adoptedastatementcovering,interalia,thebroaderquestion
oftransitthroughnon-membercountries.TheCounciltooknote"thatthe
Commissionwillfollowup,fromthepointofviewoftransitandinaccord­
ancewithCommunitylegislation andpolicytrends,,inthefieldof'infra­
structureandmarketorganization ,thebasicproblemswhicharisein
relationtootherthirdcountriestoo,willcontribute todeveloping
satisfactory solutionsattheEuropeanlevelandwillreportbacktothe
CouncilonpossibleactiontobetakenbytheCommunity."
2.ThefactthattheEuropeanParliamenthasrepeatedlydiscussedthe
problemsarisingoutoftransitthroughAustriaandSwitzerlandhighlights
theirpoliticalimportance .Inareportof2February1976(theGiraud
Report)^Parliamentstressedcommunityinterestsinthetransportsector
andcalledforjointeffortstoremedytheinadequacies oftransitinfra-
2structures .Initsreportof5January1979(theSeefeldReport)onthe
statusanddevelopmentofthecommontransportpolicy,Parliamentemphasized
theneedtoimprovetransitthroughAustriaandSwitzerland .Transit
problemshavealsofrequentlypromptedquestionsinParliament ,most
3recentlyatthepart-session of24September1979.Thedebateonthe
subjectshowedthatallpoliticalgroupswereunanimousabouttheneed'to
improvetransportthroughtheAlpsandtocooperatecloselywiththe
countries oftransit.
1.Doc.500/75.
2.Doc.512/78.
3.SeeAnnexIII.

-2- '
3.itisInthelightoftheCouncilstatementquotedinparagraph 1,and
inviewofParliament'sconcern,thattheCommissionhasdraftedthisreport.
ItReviewstheCommunity'sproblemswithtransitthroughnon-membercountries,
particularly Austria,Switzerland andYugoslavia,andthenoutlineswaysof
tacklingthem,fortheyareever-growing anddemandpropersolutions.
4..Dependingonwhetheroneregardsitfromthelegal,customsortrans-"
portpointofview,theterm"transit"takesondifferentmeanings.Wemust
thereforedefinetheterm.,Forthepurposesofthisreport"transit"will
beusedsolelytodenotetheprocessoftr&hsporting,i.e.purelyand
simplythecrossingofagiventerritorybyvehiclesusingthetransport
infrastructure ofthatterritorywithoutloadingorunloadinggoods,
5.Takingthisdefinitionasthestartingpoint,andconcentrating on
essentials ,wemustalsospecifythescopeandapplication ofthisreport:
5.1Itexaminesonlyproblems ,arising'inroadandrailtransit.Inland
waterwaytransportthroughnon-membercountriesisatpresentofsecondary
importance.ItwilltakeonanewdimensiononcetheMain-Danube linkis
completedbutishardlylikelytoreplaceroadhaulage,becausethetwo
modesareverydifferent,asarethedestinations andvolumesofthe~
trafficconcerned .
5.2Although"transit"asdefinedabovecouldbeusedtocoverpassenger
aswellasgoodstransport,itwasdecidedthatthisreportshouldconcen­
trateentirelyongoodsv.Itistruethatpassengertransport,particularly
attheheightofthetouristseason,contributesgreatlytosaturatingroad
infrastructure intransitcountries,buttheauthorities inthemneither
takespecialstepstolimitthenumberofcarspassingthroughtheir
territorynordotheyimposeanyspecialcharge.-Whereprivatecarsare
* - "
concerned,themainproblemiswiththeinfrastructure *Weshouldalso
4

point out that therailways ofoneMember State cannot cope with peak
traffic ,and that this often causes severe congestion inrail freight
traffic intheneighbouring non-member countries .
With particular regard toroad passenger transport bycoach and bus ,the
Community recently concluded negotiations with non-Community members
oftheECMT^with aview tosigning anAgreement toliberalize occasional
services ,including related transit formalities .
5.3 Although routes toareas such asScandinavia ,theIberian peninsula s
North Africa ,etc.,should not beoverlooked ,there seems tobesome
justification for limiting thegeographical scope ofthis report to
transit traffic through Switzerland ,Austria and Yugoslavia .Austria
and Switzerland arealready used byanot-insignificant proportion of
inlra-Coinmunity traffic with Italy .Now that Greece has become a
member ,Yugoslavia has inits turn unavoidably become acountry of
trans Ltfor overland traffic between theCommunity and thenewMember
State .The increase intrade between Greece and itsCommunity partners
resulting from accession must not behampered bythenon-Commuhity
countries taking unilateral measures tolimit transit traffic through
their territory .TheCommunity must therefore ensure that anymeasures
ittakes tofacilitate intra-Community transport are notcancelled cut
bytransit restrictions imposed bynon"Community countries ,.Consequently
theCommission sent totheCouncil inApril last year apaper -onrelation
with Austria inthetransport sector (2)and,more recently ,drew upa
Recommandat ionfor aCouncil Decision ontheopening ofnegotiations
between theEuropean Economic Community and theRepublic ofAustria on
transport matters (3).Also ,given thetopography ofthearea ,traffic
intheAlps isfunnelled through alimited number ofroutes ,which makes
forsaturation andcongestion .Inthis region transit problems are
1.European Conference ofMinisters ofTransport
2.C0M(80 )86final of11.4.1980 .
3. Doc .COM (81)139 fin .

thereforemoreacutethanelsewhere.Becausetheproblemissoserious,
Austria'has introduced iaroadtax;Switzerlandisconsidering following
herexampleandistoholdareferendum onthesubject;Yugoslavia
leviesatransittax.
6.Transitproblemsarealsobeingstudiedinotherinternational
forums:e.g.theEuropeanConferenceofMinistersofTransport(ECMT),
whichrecentlycompletedapreliminaryanalysisofthesituation,and
theEconomicCommissionforEurope(ECE)forwhichaWorkingPartyof
i -
itsInlandTransportCommitteehasdraftedareportoncertainkey
aspectsoftransittraffic. '
TheCommission hadahandinthedraftingoftheECMTreportandis
participating intheConference'sfurtherwork.
7.TheCommunity,asaneconomicentity,mustmakeitsowncontribution
towardssolvingtheseproblemsbytakingwhatevermeasuresarecalled
foratCommunitylevelandpromotingtheimplementation ofappropriate
measuresatEuropeanlevel.TheCommunitymustnotintheprocesslose
sightofitsownspecificinterestsregardingcommontransportpolicy,
commercialpolicyandexternalrelations.
8.Thisreporttherefore
(a)analysesthetransitsituation,particularly intheAlps;
(b)setsouttherelevantobjectives ;and
(c)statesthewaysandmeansofachievingthem.

II.ANALYSIS OFTHETRANSITSITUATION
A.Maiorroutes
9.Intra-Community trafficwhichhastocrossnon-membercountriesis
funnelledthroughtwomainroutes,onebetweenXtalyandtheMember
StatesnorthoftheAlps,theotherbetweenGreeceandtheother
MemberStates,inparticularthosenorthoftheAlps.
Inadditiontointra-Community traffic,thetraffictoItalyand
GreeceincludesthatboundforotherMediterranean countries andfor
thecountriesbeyondtheSuezCanal.
Theonlyavailablestatisticsonthevolumeoftransittrafficthrough
non-membercountriesarisingfromintra-Community tradearefragmentary
andrelateonlytoafewroutes(seestatisticalannex).However,in
generalandapartfromsomerareexceptionssuchastheBrenner,lorries
insimpleinternationaltrar.itrepresentonlyaveryminorpartofthe
totalroadtraffic *
9.1.Linesofcommunication betweenItalyandtheMemberStatesnorth
oftheAlpsfallintothreesetsgeographically ?western,overthe
Franco-Italian border;central,viaSwitzerland ?andeastern,
throughAustria.
9-l.LIn1978totalroadandrailtrafficviaallthreewas44,6million
tonnes,ofwhich17.1milliontonnes(387o)crossedthwFrench-Italian
border,9.2milliontonnes(2170)crossedSwitzerland andtheother
18.3milliontonnes(417.)passedthroughAustria.
In1970traffictotalled26.8milliontonnes,ofwhich317,crossedthe
Franco-Italianborder,397owentviaSwitzerland and307»wasrouted
throughAustria.Trafficthereforeincreasedby66%between1970and
1978.Butalthoughroadtransportroseby140%(andbyasmuchas
3507„ontheAustriantransitroutes),railtrafficincreasedbyonly
L47„(practicallyunchanged,ontheSwissandAustrianrailways;687o
increaseonthelinesbetweenFranceandItaly).

•6-
9.2.2.Thesefiguresshowthebigincreaseinroadfreight-onthe
Brennerrouteineightyearsithasmorethantrebled-andnochange
inrailfreightlevelsthrough .Switzerland andAustria;railtraffic
ontheSwissroutesisnowequalled-evensurpassed-bythatacross
theFranco-Italian border.,
. 1
Switzerland haslostitstraditional leadingpositionintotal-traffic
terms(roadplusrail)aswellasinrailfreight,whereitwaspreviously
wellahead. "
Inotherwords,theever-increasingswingtowardsroadtransporthas
resultedintrafficacrosstheAlpsbypassingSwitzerland -viaAustria
inparticular .
10.1.In1978totaltrafficbetweenGreeceandtheCommunitystood
/ '• _ • yat6.2milliontonnes,approximately 5milliontonnesbyseaand1.2
milliontonnesbyland;83%ofthelatterbyroad.Ofthetotal
overlandtraffic837#wentthroughYugoslavia ,'therestviaalternative
routesthroughBulgariaandHungary.AlltrafficfromGreecetothe
MemberStatesnorthoftheAlpshastopass,throughAustria.
10.2.Approximately halfoftheseabornefreightgoesviaItalian -
ports.TherestpasseschieflythroughDutch,French,Britishand
Belgianports.TheBelgianandDutchportscombinedeasilytakesecond
placebehindtheItalianports.
/ ' •,
10.3.Althoughnostatisticsareavailablefortransportofgoods
(chieflyroll-on/roll-off)betweenGreecefindItalytoandfrom
countriesnorthoftheAlps,estimatessuggestthattrafficvolumeis
modest.
10.4.Thesefiguresclearlyillustratethefundamentalimportance
ofmaritimetransporttoGreektradewithboththeMediterranean and
AtlanticcountriesoftheCommunity(seealsoparagraph25).

11.1 .One immediate conclusion isthat Austria isthegateway for
road transport toand from Italy andGreece .Yugoslavia also occupies
akeyposition forboth rail and road freight toand from Greece .The
sea links between Greece and Italian ports provide analternative to
transit byroad across Yugoslavia ,but transit through Austria byrail
orbyroad isstill necessary -aswith thealternative transit route
viaBulgaria and Hungary .
Although Switzerland isstill vexy important torail communications
with Italy ,ithas lost itstraditional leading position both in
absolute and inrelative terms .
12.1 .Carriage ofgoods byroad intransit through Austria or
Yugoslavia invehicles registered inaMember State issubject toa
quota system .Thenumber oftransit authorizations isfixed by
bilateral agreements .Transport operations under theCommunity quota
system are deducted from thenumber ofauthorizations granted under
bilateral agreements between theMember States oftheEuropean Community
andAustria andYugoslavia .Where theECMT quota isconcerned ,Austria
limits thenumber ofits transit authorizations granted toeach ECMT
member tothe number ofECMT authorizations allocated toit.
12.2 .Transit through Switzerland byvehicles registered inCommunity
countries isgenerally unrestricted aslong asthey comply with the
weight and size limits .Themovement ofSwiss ,Austrian andYugoslav
vehicles intheCommunity aresubject toquotas fixed bilaterally .
13. There isclose cooperation between therailways ofthecountries
concerned ;inprinciple rail transit isunrestricted ,but there are
practical limits toexpansion because oftheinadequate capacity of
certain rail systems .

-8-
B.TransitandInternational trade
14.Nationaleconomiesdependincreasingly oninternational tradefor
suppliesandforoutletsfortheirproducts.Thismeansthatin
differingdegreeseverycountryisbyturnsonethatgeneratesand
onethathoststransittraffic.
Whethernationalsofgeneratingorhostcountries,carriersprovide
servicesinneighbouring countriesandthereforeusetheirtransport
infrastructure.' Forinstance,in1977Austrianroadhaulierslicensed
forlong-distance national,and.international ,transportoperations
performedapproximately 60%ofalltheirservicesonnon-Austrian roads.
Giventheirgeographical position,AustriaandSwitzerland ,which
regardthemselvesascountriesoftransitbutarelandlocked ,
necessarily dependoninternational (particularly overseas)tradeon
transitroutesthroughneighbouring countries.Acloseinterdependence
hasthereforebeenestablished betweencountriesoftransitandthose
generatingtransittraffic.Thisisoneargumentinfavourofseeking
amultilateral methodoftacklingtheproblemswhichaffectinternational
traffic,particularly asanydifficulties createdbyacountryof
transitcaneasilybeturnedagainstit(retaliation).Anysolution
shouldrecognizetheinterestsoftransitingcountriesandcountriesof
transit,onfheonehand,andthoseofusers,ontheother.Such
solutionsshouldformpartofatransportsystemwithinwhicheach
modeoftransportisabletodevelopinaccordancewithitsspecific
advantages.

C.Consequences oftheinleaseintransi':trafficforcountriesof
trans11
15.Transittrafficcannothelpusingthetransportinfrastructure of
thecountrytransitedandsocontributing tothewearandtearonitand
addingtothenuisancescausedbytrafficingeneral.Inroadhaulage
thenuisancesareparticularly markedontransitroutesthataresaturated
atcertaintimesoftheyear.Apparentlythetransitedcountrygainsno
directbenefitfromthistraffic.' ■■
Thisisbecausespeedsarenowsuchastoprecludetheneedtostop
exceptforthecrew'srestperiodsrequiredbytherelevantsocial
legislation .Nomoneyisspentinthetransitedcountryexcept,insome
instances,onfuel.Railtraffic,incontrast,isasourceofincomefor
therailwaysofthetransitedcountry,fortheychargefortheservices
theyprovide;andtherearenonuisancesonthescaleofthosecaused
byroadtransport .
15.1.Theincreaseinheavyvehicletransittrafficnotonlycontributes
tothedeterioration ofinfrastructures butalsoaggravatescongestion .
Bycausingdelays,congestionadverselyaffectsthosetransportoperations
thatdirectlybenefitthenationaleconomyofthetransitedcountry;the
increaseintrafficdensityalsohasadirecteffectonthenumberof
accidentsinvolvingthetransitedcountry'scitizensandvehicles.
»
15.2.Forinstance,between1970and1975theaverageincreaseintraffic
onAustrianroadswas2870;onthe"Castarbeiterroute "-i.e.thelink
betweenNWandSEEurope-itwas687o.Itisestimatedthatcnworking
daysthereisonaverageoneheavyvehicleontheroadforeverythree
cars.Onaverage,327»ofallaccidentsonAustrianroadsoccurmthe
"Castarbeiterroute ".Ondayswhentrafficisdense,itcanbe50%.
15.3.Furthermore ,trafficjams-inevitableinviewofthepresent
stateoftheroadsandthefactthatimprovements alwayslagbehind

10-
trafficvolume-bothincreaseenergyconsumption anddegradethe
environment (airpollutionandnoise).Touristregionssufferthe
unmitigatedeffectsofthis,andtheinhabitants oftheareasconcerned-
whoaredisturbedbythepresentsituation-haveexpressedtheir
dissatisfaction innouncertainterms.Theyareputtingpressureon.
thecompetentauthorities totakestepstodivertheavytransittraffic.
15.4.Whilsttheroadinfrastructure ofsomecountriesisreaching
*
saturationpoint,thereis'sparecapacity -availablefortransittraffic
onsomerailwaylinesinthetransitedcountries.Thetransferofroad
traffictorailwayswouldbenefitcountriesoftransitinseveralways-
theirrailways ,wouldobtainpayingbusinesswhichwouldgivethembetter
operatingresults,androadcongestion wouldberelieved.Inviewof
tholargetransittonnagecarried,forinstancebyAustrianroads,an
equallylargeVolumeoftrafficwouldhavetobetransferredtothe
railwaystobringrealrelieftotheroads.Andtheabilityofthe
railwaysofsometransitcountriestoabsorbmuchextratrafficis
disputed.Nevertheless ,asnomeansofimprovingthesituationshould
beignored,thegovernments involvedshouldseriouslyconsider
possibilities forremedyinganyshortcomings intherailways.

-11-
D.Measurestakenbycountriesoftransit:(oropentothem)todeal
withtheinconvenience andhazardsoftransittraffic
16.Theinconvenience andhazardsduetotransittrafficarisechiefly
fromthecarriageofgoodsbyroad,andthestepstakenby,oropento>
countriesoftransittodealwiththem ■fallintotwomajorclasses:
thosewhichresultinimprovedflowofroadtraffic,andsotendto
promotetransitbyroad,andthosewhichhavetheeffectofrestraining
thegrowthoftransittraffic,orevenreducingit„
17.Countriesoftransitmayunilateraly takecertainstepstoaidthe
movementofvehicles-primarilybybuildingmajortransitroadsand
improvingexistingones.Infrastructure projects,however,havelong
lead-times andmaybebeyondthemeansofthosecountries .Other
steps,requiringnogreatexpenditure bythestatesinquestion,would
bringimmediatebenefit.Twosuchpossiblestepsare:improved
organization offrontierchecksandanincreaseinthepayloadof
lorriesinordertoreducethenumberofthemontheroads.
18.Countriesoftransitareabletotakeabroadspectrumofmeasures
torestricttransittraffic.Quotasareonesuchsystemandarealready
common.Agreementsbetweentwostatesplaceanupperlimitonthe
numberofvehiclesfromthecontractingpartiespermittedtotransit
theterritoryofeach.
V

18.1.Thissystemmayormaynotbecombinedwithunilateralmeasures
suchas: • ,
(a)ataxontransitoperationsincludingonesperformedbyforeign
vehicles,wearandtearontheroadinfrastructure ;,
(b)alegallimitontheweightandsizeofroadvehicles(Switzerland
willnotadmitvehiclesgrossing ,morethan28tonnes,thereare
eventighterrestrictions onsome"sectionsoftheSwissroadnetwork?
(c)abanonmovementsatnightoratweekends(inAustriaandSwitzerland
inGermanyandFrance,too,atcertaintimesoftheyear).
18.2.Thesenegativemeasuresaretheonesmostoftentakenbycountries
oftransit. ,, '
19.Unilateralactionbyaicountryoftransit ,may,ofcourse,prompt
4
1 -
"transiting"country«stotakereprisals.TheroadtaxleviedbyAustria
since1July1978hasresultedinseveralcountrieswhosevehiclespass»
throughAustriadecidingtopenaliseAustrianvehiclesusingtheir
territory.Proliferation ofrestrictive meausres,followed "byreprisals,
createsaclimatewhichisnotconducivetothegrowthofinternational
trade,fromwhichultimatelyallthecountriesconcernedsuffer.
E.Interestsofthe"transiting"countries
20.Theprimaryconcernof"transiting"countriesissimplytoprevent
theirtradebeingsubjecttoobstaclesofwhateverkind.Whatmatters
to'themistoseetheirinternational transportoperationscarriedout
underflexiblearrangements andtobeabletoperformtheminany
circumstances alongthemostconvenientandeconomicalroutes.While.
the"transiting"countriesmustbepreparedtotakeaccountofthe
legitimateinterestofcountriesoftransit,thelatter,fortheirpart

mustdoeverythingpossiblefortradeflowstobekeptonthenatural
i'>111i.Tili551rparticularly importantbecauseoftheenlirRrment
i-liln-mi11i!fyinliM'i'.iiii' (iri'i'tc,owin;;totheoutlyingposition
0I(!iiscountry,someofwhoseoverlandtradewithitspartnersin
1In('orninu[ii«ywillluivt!to|>nfinitcrosNnon-membercountries .Close
economiclinkshnvealsobeenforgedbetweentheCommunityandTurkey.

4■14-
III.GOALSWITHREGARDTOTRANSIT;WAYSOFACHIEVING THEM
'\
21.1.Thespectacularincreaseinroadtrafficandtheinabilityof
certainroadstoabsorbthistraffichave.resultedintrafficjamsat
severalpoints,whichconstituterealbottlenecks ,mainlyinthealpine
\ ■
regions. \
Theresultingdelaysgiverisetoaconsiderable wasteoftimeand
energyandaffecttheflowofexternaltrade.
Theofilysolutionistoremovethesebottlenecks andpromotethe
development ofothertransportmodesortechnologies .Jointactionin
severalareasmayhelptoovercomethepresentdifficulties
21.2.Asatisfactory solutiontotheproblemoftransitthroughnon-;
Communitycountriescanonlybereachedbypursuingthefollowingaims:
(a)itmustbepossiblefortransportoperationstobeperformedas
freelyaspossibleandinamannerenablinginternational tradeto
-beconductedatleastcosttosocietyatlarge,takingintoaccount
roadsafetyandenvironmental protection ;.~
•(b)thegradualremovalofadministrative andtechnicalrestrictions on
transittraffic;
(c),tofindwaysofachievingabetterbalancedtrafficdistribution .v
geographically ,takingaccountofthecomplementarity ofthe
differentmodesoftransport'(combinedtransport,.roll-on/roll-off);
(d)consultation ohprojectsrelatingtotransitroutesand,where
necessary,attemptsunderexistingorproposedfinancialarrange­
mentstofindwaysofmakingafaircontribution tothecostof
projectsofcommoninterest;
(e)tousesimilarmethodsofinfrastructure charging,avoidingdouble
charging.

15-
21.3.Inordertoachievetheseobjectives andfindsolutionsacceptable
tonon-membercountries,,theCommunitymustsettleanumberofmatters
stilloutstanding inrelationtothecommontransportpolicysothatit
cantakeaconsistentlinebothinbilateralnegotiations withthose
countriesandintheinternational organization whichdealwiththese
problems.
22.Thesegoalsrelatetothefieldsoutlinedbelow.
23.Infrastructure
i
23.1.Theriseininternational tradeandtheincreaseinprivatetravel,
withtheresultantheavyfinancialburdenontheStateswhichbuildand
maintaintrunkroutes,haveshowntheneedforsolutionstotheproblem
arisingfrommajortransitroutes.Cooperation withaviewtofinding
solutionisasnecessarywhentheseroutespassthroughthealpine
regionswhereverydensetrafficisconcentrated innarrowcorridors ,
makingbuildingandmaintenanceparticularly expensive,asitiswhen
theseroutespassthroughYugoslaviawherethecapacityoftheinfra­
structureiswellbelowthedemandfromtransittraffic.
23.2.1.Aprerequisite forsuchsolutionsisathoroughknowledgeof
therequirements intermsofinfrastructure ,implying:
(a)thepreparation ofaninventoryofbottlenecks ontransitroutes;
(b)forwardstudiesoftransportneedsontheseroutes.
23.2.2.AsrequestedbytheCouncil,theCommissionhasreportedon
bottlenecksintransportinfrastructure .^"Thereportdealswith
majorroutesofCommunityinterest;itcanbesupplemented laterby
areviewofthebottleneck situationincountries oftransit.
L.COM(80)323final,20.6.1980.

23.2.3.Regardingfuturetransportdemand,theforwardstudyofgoods
transportneeds(completedin1978)providesusefuldataontrafficflow
betweentheCommunityandnon-membercountries.Thisstudyhasbeen
combinedwiththeresultsofCOST33(Forwardstudyofpassengertransport
betweenlargeconurbations )andwillbecontinuedin1981bythe
application oftheforecaststoaspecificnetwork.Theresultswill
needtobecheckedforcompatibility withthoseofstudiescarriedout
inthecountriesoftransit.
I
23.3.1.Thewidestpossibleconsultation andcoordination ontransit
infrastructure development programmes canhelptosolveexistingproblems
andexpeditetheremovedofbottlenecks .InthisconnectiontheDecision
of20February1978instituting aconsultation procedureandsettingup
aCommitteeonTransportInfrastructure isagoodstartingpoint.
ProjectsaljoutwhichtheCommitteemayconsult^include"projectsofa_
MemberStatehavingasignificanteffectontrafficbetweenMemberStates
orwiththirdcountries".AttherequestoftheCommissiontheCommittee
willalsocarryout"anexamination ofanyquestionconcerningthe
development ofatransportnetwork "ofinteresttotheCommunity".Since
thereisnoquestionofextendingtheCommittee'sremittoprojectsand
programmestotoecarriedoutinthirdcountries,consideration should
begiventowaysinwhichliasionwiththeAustrian,SwissandYugoslav
authoritiesrelatingtotransportinfrastructure couldbedeveloped
thepurposeoftheexchangeofinformation ,andpossiblecooperation .
Inthisconnection ,mentionshouldbemadeoftheamendmenttothe
Commission'sproposaltotheCouncilonsupportforprojectsofCommunity
interestintransportinfrastructure withaviewtoextendingthe -
measuresmquestiontoprojectsinnon-Communitycountries.^'
L-t.i.2.Actionasoutlinedabovewillidentifythoseprojectswhichare
potentialbenefittoallpartiesconcernedandwhichmaywarranta
.omunitycontribution totheirfinancing,possiblysupplemented byE1B
•.ti-rvention . _ - •
OJNo.C89,10.4.1980,

-17-
23.4.1 .Austria has embarked upon amajor project with thebuilding of
the "Innkrei s-Pyrhnautobahn "(INPA). What made itworth-while tobuild
this motorway ,which will become asection ofthe main road link with
south-eastern Europe ,wasthesaturation ofthe"Gastarbei terroute "at
certain times ofthe year ,
23.4.2 .The Austrian Government has asked forfinancial support from the
Community toenable ittoexpedite the completion ofthe INPA ,Without
financial support from the Community itislikely that Austria will delay
the completion ofthis road link and spend its money onbuilding
infrastructure which does more toserve its national interests .The
Commission has sent acommunication onthis subject tothe Council (1)=
The Commission recently sent tothe Council aRecommendation for aDecision
onthe opening ofnegotiations with Austria ontransport matters (2).
23.5 . Progress could bemade towards asolution tothe present problems
oftransit traffic through certain non-mernber countries ifthe Council
were toadopt without delay the amended proposal for aregulation on
support fortransport infrastructure projects ofCommunity interest (3).
This would beawayofcontributing towards the cost oftransport
infrastructure ofCommunity interest even when itislocated inthe
territory ofnon-metsiber countries .
24.1 .Organization ofmarkets
24.1.1 .Inits communication tothe Council ofOctober 1973 (which ,in
essentials ,was approved byParliament and the Economic and Social
Committee )the Community set out the main lines ofwhat needs tobedone,
within aCommunity transport system ,about common organization of
transport markets ,
24.1.2 .Further particulars were given inthe Commission communication of
October 1975 which proposed tothe Council measures designed toinstitute
step bystep aform ofmarket organisation working essentially ona
market-economy basis while taking account ofthesocial requirements of
society atlarge .
<1)Doc.C0PK80 )86final ,11,4.1980
(2) COM (81)139final
(3)0JNo.C89,10o4.1980

18-
24.1.3 .Aspart ofthis organization ofthemarket theCommunity has
gradually been easing rsometimes entirely removing -restrictions on
access toth^market ,andhence oncompetition inroad haulage between
Member States .Inorder todothis ,itisintroducing andgradually
-extending theCommunity quota and ,atthesame time ,abolishing -
quantitative restrictions onsome ofthetypes oftransport service
listed inthe first Council Directive of1962 ,which hasbeen amended
several times . .
Transport oprations covered byaCommunity authorisation andoperations
carried outunder theterms oftheFirst Directive transit freely through
Member States .Other ,transport operations ,however ,,remain subject to
bitateral quota arrangements fortransit through certain Member States .
Theposition with regard tonon-member countries would bestronger if
there were already ageneral freedom oftransit forCommunity transporters
passing through Member States .
These measures ,though they have enabled road hauliers -asregards
integration toimprove theorganization oftheir services latComnuKiity
lev^l ,cannot befully effective over routes between Member States
entailing transit via anon-Community country which applies restrictions
like those mentioned inparagraph 18above .
Inthe interests ofthe smooth flow oftrade between Member States and in
order that all trade maybenefit from theprogress ofthecommon transport
policy ,theCommunity should negotiate freedom ofpassage fortraffic
between Member States with non-Community countries oftransit -provided
such traffic iscovered byaCommunity authorization orfulfils the
conditions ofthe first Directive of1962 .
24.2 .Combined transport techniques such asroad /rail andcontaineriza -
rion,which ar-e intermodal bynature ,offer economic benefits for long­
' . • ' » \
•i;iuIoperations :they canreduce road traffic ,enhance road safety ,bring
fresh traffic' totherailways ,anaprovide benefits toroad hauliers and
users interms ofregularity andspeed over long distances .But these -
U'chniques also require close cooperation between modes ininvestment
and •management .
' . V.

-19-
24.2.2 .Theauthorities can foster thedevelopment ofcombined transport
incertain positive ways ,though without distroting theconditions of
competition :
(a)In1975 theCommunity adopted aDirective (amended in1978 )which
laid down common rules forcertain rail /road goods transport operations
between Member States ;these rules have been beneficial .
(b)On26March 1981 theCommunity adopted adecision ontheopening of
negotiations between theEuropean Economic Community andnon-member ;
countries concerning thesetting upofcommon rules applicable to
certain combined road /rail traffic .Thenegotiations will start inthe
second half of1981 .
(c)TheCommission recently acted again topromote combined transport ;it
put up: "
(i)aproposal for aDirective oncertain measures designed topromote
thedevelopment ofcombined transport ;
(ii)aproposal for aRegulation amending Regulation (EEC)No.1107 /70
with aview tosupplementing thesystem for thegranting ofaids
for transport byrail ,road and inland waterway bytheaddition
ofprovisions oncombined transport .
All these steps are intended torelieve congestion onmajor road routes and
therefore relate also totransit viacertain third countries (Switzerland ,
Austria and Yugoslavia ).
Reference should also bemade atthis point totheResolution adopted by
C2)theCouncil ofMinisters ofth_ECMT on12December 1978 and recently on
(3)27November 1980 calling onGovernments totake steps topromote combined
transport techniques onappropriate routes .
24.2.3 .The Swiss railways ,with government support have opted whole­
heartedly todevelop road /rail transit thruugh their country .Therail
network isbeing modified accordingly and terminals have been ,orareabout
tobe ,built .Switzerland seems determined -despite improvements toits
road network -tomaintain its ban onthe movement ofroad vehicles
exceeding 28tonnes gross weight .Inexchange Switzerland will provide
•tensive facilities for 38/44tonne lorries tobecarried byraid
niomically from north tosouth and vice versa .
cetheReport ontheapplication oftheCouncil Directive of17.2.1975
(;>oc.COM(77)672 final ).
^ Resolution oftheCouncil ofMinisters oftheECMT of12,12.1978
(Doc .C0M(78)30 revised ).
3.Resolution oftheCouncil ofMinisters oftheECMT of27.11.1980 .

-20-
Italy,'fotitspart,iswideningtheBrennerlinetotakewagonsusedfor
rail/roadtransport. 1
4/ .
25.SeaTransport ^;,
-• '■"'\. '
25.1.,Seatransportisalreadyanalternative tolandtransportoverthe
* / • ■.
maintransalpinetransitroutes,particularly betweenGreeceandthe
MemberStatesnorthoftheAlps.Cargoesconsistedchieflyofbulkgoods,
particularly oilandoilproducts,butalsoofgeneralgoodswhereseais
aviablealternative tolandtransport.
25.2.AlargeproportionofthistrafficisbetweenItalyandGreeceand
theportsoftheAtlanticseaboard.SomeofthetradewithGreecei£
shippedfromGreecetoportsintheNorthernAdriatic,andissentthe
restofthewaybyland.,Thisrelievesthetransitroutesthrough
Yugoslavia ,butthereisnowayofavoidingAustriaorSwitzerland .
25.3.Sentransportcompeteswithlandtransport,particularly withrail.
C.-ireshouldbetaken,therefore,topreventnationalorCommunitymeasures
cistortingthis.competition .Incentivesshouldbegivenfortheuseof
seatransport ,however,wherethiswouldhelptorelievecongestedover­
landroutes;thoughtmustbegiventowhatmeasures,ifany,are
accessary.Particularconsideration mus«.begiventoroll-on/roll-off
transport .

21
26.Infrastructure charging
26.1.ProperallocationofthecostofInfrastructure usetothevarious
modesisoneofthefundamental elementsofatransportpolicy.The
introduction ofasystemforallocatingcostsandchargingfortheuseof
infrastructure ,asanintegralpartofthecommontransportpolicy,has
beenanaimsincethe1960s.
26.2.Therearemanyproblemsindeveloping andbringinginsuchasystem-
bothtechnica1/economic,fiscalandpolitical.Technical/economicproblems
includemethodsofcalculation ,allocationcriteriaandthevariationin
costsbetweenregions.Fiscalandpoliticalproblemsincludetheuseof
revenue,theextentofcoverageofcostsbytaxes,theprincipleof
chargingaccordingtonationality orterritoriality ,andtheneedtoavoid
doubletaxation .
26.3.DespitetheseproblemstheCommunitypassedanimportantmilestone
intheroad-transpor tfieldinJune1978whentheCouncilagreedin
principletotheproposalformodifyingtaxesoncommercialvehicles.In
viewofthereservation expressedbyoneMemberState,however,the
directivehasnotyetbeenformallyadopted.Thisdirectiveneedstobe
adoptedwithoutdelayifwearetohavearrangements ,attheEuropean
level,coveringtheEECandnon-membercountriesoftransitmentionedin
ihisreport.
"2o>.4.Someoftheprinciplesenshrinedinthedirectiverelateparticularly
ointernational transportand,hence,totransit.Thedirectiverelates
Lirstlytoheavygoodsvehicles,layingdownthattheymust,throughfuel
dutyandvehicletaxes,coveratleastthemarginalcostsofroadusedue
tothem;commonmethodsareusedforcalculation .Secondly,taxationis
obeonanationalbasis,sincethereisbroadbalanceindistance
•wcredbyvehiclesinMemberStatesotherthanthatofregistration .
T.PSonvehiclesarepaidonlyinthecountryofregistration butonthe
bat,isofthetotaldistancecoveredbythevehicle,includingthatcovered
nothercountries .Taxesonfuelsare,obviously,paidinthecountry
wherethefuelistakenon.InsidetheEECtheprincipleofmutualtax
t'xemption ,whichisalreadyappliedinpractice,willbecometheleg^l
rule.

-22-
Λ
26.5»ThisprinciplehadalreadybecometherulebetweenmostEuropean
countriesinthe1960sand1970s.Buttheunilateralintroduction by
AustriaofitsroadtaxinJuly1978brokewiththe.trendandaeta
precedent'whichmightbefollowedbySwitzerlandifplansnowafootshould
materialize .TheAustriantax,andtheSwissplansforone,arebasedon
theprincipleof'territorial 'taxation,whileYugoslaviaappliesaroad
transittax.
r
26.6.Co-existence ofthetwosystemscarriesWxthitanobviousriskof
doubletaxation.Inordertoavoidthisthedirectivereferredtoabove
permitsMemberStatestograntreductions onvehicletaxespaidinthe
countriesofregistration totheextentthattheyaresubjecttotaxesof
thesamekindinthirdcountriesandproratathetimespentinthese
countries .Thepossibilitythatvehiclesfromthesethirdcountriesmay
payataxinsidetheEECisalsonotprecluded,foroneMemberState
"V.
reintroduced taxesonAustrialvehicleswhenAustriaintroduceditsown"
taxes.Whilejustified,such'reprisals'orstepstoensureequalityof-
treatment,wouldrequireadministrative checks,hold-upsatfrontiersetc.,
withoutinmostcasesanycorresponding benefits.Anyinternational
solutionshould,consequently ,endeavour ,toretaintheprincipleofnational
taxationunlessitseffectsaccentuate imbalancebetweencountries .Take
theexampleofAustria:iftheuseofforeignroadsbyAustrianvehicles
approximately equalledtheuseoftheAustrianinfrastructure byforeign
vehicles,.andiftheAustrianroadtaxwasbasedonsimilarcostings,it
wouldbepossiblenottoimposeataxonforeignvehiclesinthecountry
concernedwithoutprejudicetothe.principleofcoverageofinfrastructure
costs.Itfollowsfromthisargumentthat,conversely,ifthevolumeof
trafficgeneratedinAustriabynon-Austrian vehicleswasproportionately
muchgreater,'national'taxationwouldnotonitsownbesufficient and"a
specificcompensatory mechanismwouldbeneeded.
2fj./,Anad-hocworkingpartysetupbytheECMTis-nowtryingtodevise
■ICIamechanism,butitisquitepossiblethatasolution .coveringthe
.vru-.eofEuropemaybeslowtoemerge;itmaybenecessarytoseekaless
extonsiveagreement,e.g.With',Austria,Switzerland andYugoslavia,because
theseareoutstandingly thecountriesoftransitfortheenlargedCommunity.

-23 -
26.8 .Theproblem here relates chiefly tothefollowing points :
(a)theneed forcarriers topay theinfrastructure costs attributable to
them ;
(b)calculation ofanymajor discrepancies inrevenue between countries ;
(c)onthebasis ofthis calculation ,amechanism for the transfer of
resources between countries ,where necessary .
Theprinciples andmethods foreffecting any such transfer will have
tobeexamined ingreater detail andmay then give rise tonegotia­
tions between theCommunity and thenon-member countries concerned .
27.Weights and dimensions ofvehicles
There isadirect relationship between vehicle types ,thevarying damage
they cause toroads and ,consequently ,theamount oftaxpaid onthem ,in
order that infrastructure costs may beproperly allocated .TheCommunity
Regulation ontheweights anddimensions ofcommercial vehicles ,which is
nowbefore theCouncil ,would laydown the types ofvehicles permitted on
theentire Community road network .Thebenefit ofthis Regulation would
bereduced considerably ifnon-member States ,through which traffic between
certain Member States has topass ,retained substantially different rules ,
asisthe casein Switzer Iand .atpresent ,
28 ..Working conditions inroad transport
S' .,'ict enforcement ofrules ontheworking conditions ofroad vehicle crews
w.mld not only reduce road accidents ,incountries oftransit orelsewhere ,
,■;talso tend toharmonize conditions ofcompetition between modes and so
,nmote amodal split based onmodal characteristics .The provisions of
;i>">AETR Agreement are currently being aligned with those oftheCommunity
sc ;a1Regulation No .543/69.Once this isdone there will beauniform
.vhtem ,which would even extend tomeans ofcontrol ,throughout the
"or ,,unit vand incountries oftransit .The countries concerns would then
toensure that social regulations were strictly applied ,irrespective
wfnationality .

29.Establishing railtariffs .
For.certainrailservices,ratesarestillarrived .atbymerelyaddingup
thedomesticrateschargedonthevariousnetworks.Therailwaysshould
bepersuadedtodomoretomeettheneedsofinternational tradeapplying^
generallyasystemofthroughinternational tariffsinaccordancewiththe
ruleswhichgovernamarketbasedonhealthycompetition .Therailways
musthaveconsiderable latitudetosettheirownrates.
TheCommission hassubmittedtotheCouncilaproposaltogivetherailways
therighttoestablishcompanythroughinternational tariffsforthe
carriageofgoodsbetweenMemberStateswithoutneedofpriorapprovalby
theoverseeingauthorities .IftheCounciladoptsthisproposal,itshould
strengthenthepositionoftherailwaysoninternational marketsandthus
alleviatethestrainsinsomecountries duetothevolumeoftransitroad
traffic.
30.Cooperation betweenrailways .
30.1.Europe'srailwayshaveforlongcooperatedcloselyinallareasof
commoninterest-particularly_thetechnicalandcommercialhandlingof
international traffic.Morecooperationisneededinviewoftechnical
progressandincreasingcompetition fromroadtransport,andtoprovide
userswithmodern,competitiverailservices
30.Z.Tothlaend,andInaccordancewiththeCouncilDecisionof20May
xIonIhoImprovement ofthesituationofrailwayundertakings ,theGroup
ofNine-CommunityRailwayshasdrawnupshortandmedium-termaction
programmes ;theirimplementation oftheseprogrammes mayextendtonon-
Communitycountriesoftransitandinfacttheirnationalrailwaysare
al..adyassociatedwiththe.workoftheUIC'sspecialized committees.The
;■..scrianandSwissrailwaysarealsorepresented onenlargedWorking
CroupsoftheNineCommunityRailways.

31.Facilitation at:frontiers
Itc,oeswithoutsayingthatifrailwaywagonsorlorrieshavetohalta
16ngtimeatfrontiersforcustoms,healthorqualityinspections ,checks
ontheduty-freefuelallowanceorforthepaymentofduesandtaxes,this
impedestheflowoftraffic.Thesehold-upscausequeuesanddelayswhich
affecttransittrafficasmuchasimportorexporttraffic.Nevertheless ,
transitservicesareoftencoveredbycustomsdocumentswhichsimplify
frontierformalities .Customsareasshouldbelaidoutinsuchawaythat
transitvehiclescanpassthefrontiermoreeasilyandmorequickly.This
isamatterforgovernments ,whoshouldsparenoefforttorationalize
customsareasandimprovecustomsproceduresatpointsofdepartureand
destination.
32.Externalrelations
32.1.Theproblemoftransitthroughnon-membercountriesisonlyone
aspectoftheCommunity'sexternalrelations .Inordertomaintainand
developtradewithEasternandSouth-Eastern,EuropetheSouthEastand
theMiddleEastandtoimprovetradewithintheCommunitywithItalyand
Greece,suitablesolutionstotheproblemwillhavetobeworkedoutwith
thecountriesconcerned .Theincreaseinintra-Community trafficresulting
fromtheaccessionofGreecemakesitmorenecessarythanevertoremove
obstaclestotransittraffic.AstheAccessionTreatyrequires,the
Ci.issionisholdingnegotiations onthispointwithAustriaandYugoslavia
!'o«'ver,thesuccessofthesenegotiations Largelydependsonsolvingthe
jblernoffinancingtheinfrastructure fortransitthroughthenon-member
countriesinvolved.
'2.2.'Continuedandwidergeneraldiscussionwithnon-membercountrieson
i.ittersaffectingtransportshouldencourageaclimateofcooperation con­
ducivetothesolvingoftransitproblems.TheCommissional~-adyhas

-26
regulardiscussions withAustriaandSwitzerland oncommontransport'
Interestsandproblems.WithAustria,theCommissionisplanningto
concludeacooperationagreementwhichcoversallaspectsoftransport.^"
4 "
Negotiations beganwithSwitzerland andwhentheSwissGovernmentdeclared
itsintentionoflevyingit?owntaxontransitroadtraffic.
232.3.Thecooperation agreementbetweentheCommunityandYugoslavia
includesclausesontransport,underwhichwayswillbesoughtofimproving
andextendingservices,implementing specificmeasuresofmutualinterest
andpromotingtheimprovement anddevelopment ofinfrastructures forthe
mutualbenefitofthecontractingparties.
1.COM(80)final,11.4.1980andCOM(81)139final,
2.SignedinBelgradeon2.4.1980.'

IV.ACTIONNEEDED
ThelistofactionswhichfollowstakesaccountoftheCouncilDecision
of12June1978andoftheremarksmadeinthisreport;theCommission
considerstheyshouldbetakeninordertofacilitatethetransitof
Communitytrafficthroughnon-membercountries .
M
33.Infrastructure
33.1..^Commissionaction
(i)Reviewthebottlenecksituationincountriesoftransitincon­
junctionwiththesimilarreviewoftheCommunity .
(ii)Continueforwardstudiesoftransportrequirements onthemain
transitroutes.
(iii)StudythemaintransitrouteswithaneyetoaEuropeansolution
totheproblemsinvolved."
(iv)Developspecialliaisonproceduresregardingtransportinfra­
structureundertheexistinginformation exchangearrangements with
AustriaandSwitzerland ;withYugoslaviathisshouldbeorganized
inthecontextoftheCooperation Council.
33.2.CouncilDecisions
(i)Adoptionoftheamendedproposalonfinancialsupportfortransit
infrastruetures.
(ii)AdoptionofasolutiontotheproblemofaCommunitycontribution
tothefinancingoftheIKPAmotorwayinAustriaand,inthemore
generalframeworkoftransportlinkswithAustria,authorizing the
Commission tonegotiateandlaterreachdecisionsonthesubject
(seeparagraph32).
34.Combinedtransport
34.1.Commissionaction
Proposedirectivesdesignedtopromotethedevelopment ofcombinedtransport
atCommunitylevelandonroutestoandfromnon-Community countries .

34.2.CouncilDecisions .
(i)SwiftadoptionoftheproposalforaCouncilDecisionontheopening
ofnegotiations foragreementsbetweentheEECandnon-member
> ■countriesonarrangements forcertaintypesofinternational
combinedroad/railcarriageofgoods. ..
(11)AdoptionoftheproposalforaCouncilDirectiveoncertainmeasures
designedtopromotethedevelopment ofcombinedtransport,and
maintainonapermanentbasisthedirectives ontheestablishment
ofcommonrulesforcertaintypesofcombinedroad/railcarriageof
goodsbetweenMemberStatesasregardscontainers 20feetormore
longandswopbodieswithoutsupports.<
(ill)AdoptionoftheproposalforaCouncilRegulation amending
Regulation No,1107/70withaviewtosupplementing systemsofaid
torail,roadandinlandwaterwaytransportbyincludingprovisions
* '' fr..
relatingtocombinedtransport.' /
35.Seatransport
Commission action
(i)Lookatpossiblemeasurestopromotecertaintrades-particularly
inroll-on/roll-offandcontainerized forms.
(ii)Makeproposalsbasedonthesemeasures.
36.Infrastructure charging- , ■-
36.L.Commission action
^i)Stepupnegotiations withthethreenon-membercountriesconcerned
withaviewtofindinganadhocsolutiontotheproblemofinfra­
structurecharginginviewofpresenttransittaxarrangements ,so
astoarriveatasolutionfairtobothsides.
(ii)Findacomprehensive solutionforthecountriesofWesternEurope
e.g.byadoptingaCommunitypositionatmeetingsoftheinter­
nationalorganizations responsible ".
36.2.CouncilDecision '
(i)Swiftadoptionoftheproposalforadirectiveontheadjustmentof
nationalcommercial-vehicle taxsystems.

-29-
37.Weightsanddimensions ofvehicles
37.1.Commission action
Workoutasolutionsatisfactory totheCommunityandthethreenon-member
countriesconcernedtotheproblemofvehicleweightsanddimensions ,.
37.2.CouncilDecision
SwiftadoptionoftheproposalforaCouncilDirectiveonweightsand
certainotherfeaturesofroadhaulagevehicles.
38.Workingconditions inroadtransport
38.1,Commission action
(i)ContinuewithitseffortstohavetheAETRAgreementamendedto
bringitintolinewithRegulation No.543/69andtosecurethe
accessionoftheCommunitytothatAgreement .
(ii)Putupaproposalfortheacceptance bytheCommunityoftheAETR
Agreementassoamended.
f'ii)Approachthenon-Community countriesconcernedwhichhavenotyet
ratifiedtheAETRAgreementwithaviewtotheirratifyingit.
38.2.CouncilDecision
AdoptionoftheproposalforaCouncilDecisionontheamendmentofthe
AETRandtheaccessionoftheEuropeanCommunities toit.
39.Establishingtailtariffs
CouncilDecision
AdoptionoftheamendedproposalforaCouncilregulation ontheestablish­
mentofinternational railgoodsrates(companythroughinternational
tnriffs).
40.Cooperationbetweenrailways
Commissionaction
(i)Continuetopromotetheshort-andmedium-term actionprogrammes
drcwnupbytheGroupofNineRailwaysundertheCouncilDecisionof
20May1975enimprovingthesituationofrailwayundertakings .

(ii)Moreliaisonwithnon-Community countriesinordertoharmonize
actioninthisdirection .
41.Facilitation atFrontiers
41.1#Conmission action ^ •
i■ ■■ i..
ζ(i)Closercontactwiththenon-membercountriesconcerned.
(ii)Workoutjointpositionsformeetingsoftheinternational
organizations responsible . "
41.2.CouncilDecisions
(i)Decisionontheadoptionofjointpositions.
4 _ ■ ■(ii)AdoptionoftheCommissionproposalontheduty-freeadmissionof
fuel.
(iii)Decisionsontheacceptance bytheCommunityofResolutions of
international organizations .
42.Externalrelations .
~
42.1.Commissionaction ., -
(i)ProposalforaCouncilDecisionontheopeningofnegotiations with
:Austriawithaviewtoaframeworkagreementontransportquestions,
inordertosolve.certainproblemsofCommunitytransitthrough
Austria,particularly enroutetoGreece,thequestionofthe
infrastructure charging(roadtax),thematterofapossible
financialcontribution bytheCommunitytothebuilding'oftheIKPA
motorwayinAustriaandothertransportproblems. /.
vii;Efforts,inthecontextofthenegotiations ontheprotocolamending
*,thecooperation agreementbetweentheCommunityandYugoslaviain
viewoftheaccessionofGreece,toarriveatbetterarrangements
fortransitthroughYugoslavia.(Discussionsatpresentunderway",
intheCouncilregardingnegotiatingdirectives.)
(iii)Implementation andamplification oftheprovisions ontransportin
thecooperation agreementbetweentheCommunityandYugoslavia ,
*
oncethisagreementhascomeintoforce.
U1.2.CouncilDecision y
..rcisionontheCommissionproposalsgeneratedbytheaboveactions.

V. CONCLUSIONS
43.1 .TheCommission does not consider itpossible totake the same line
towards Austria ,Switzerland andYugoslavia ,ortoadopt identical solutions
for these three countries atthesame time .Thereason isthat they are
not equal interms ofeconomic development and oftransport-system ,
structure ,facilities and equipment .Although they dohave some common
features ^inother respects they arebynomeans similar .Furthermore ,
theCommunity 'srelations with these countries arenot ofthesame nature .
Separate solutions should therefore befound totheproblems with each ,by
different procedures insome cases .
43.2 .Forexample ,there isaspecial problem with Austria ,since provid­
ingcontributions tocertain infrastructure schemes isseen asasine qua
non .TheCommission believes itpossible tosolve this problem byrecom­
mending that theCouncil decide tomake afinancial contribution and that
theamount benegotiated inthe light ofeconomic and political factors
while attempts aremade tosecure along-term cooperation agreement byall
appropriate means .With Switzerland ,ontheother hand ,the time isnot yet ripe
forsuch anapproach and there isnoquestion offinancial preconditions .
Solutions should therefore befound tocertain specific problems ,andnot
necessarily onallpoints .Inthecase ofYugoslavia ,apart from the
financial protocol already inforce whereby theYugoslavs may put forward
transport infrastructure projects for financing ,thecooperation agree­
ment -which isnot yet inforce -provides forarrangements concerning
transport which should beexamined indetail attheappropriate time .
Solutions should besought inthis framework .
43.3 .TheCommission would stress that anyimprovement ininternational
traffic with these ,orother ,non-member countries will benefit them and
theMember States .TheCommunity must clarify andproperly define its
position ,ifEuropean transport istoflow more smoothly .Itis
particularly important ,therefore ,that theCommunity beseen bythose
countries tohave clearly defined positions .Tothis end theCommission

hassenttheCouncilanumberofproposals.Theimportanceforimproving
Europe'stransportsystemofadoptingtheseproposalsmustnowbe
acknowledged .TheCommunitywillhavetotakeaconsistentlinein
international forumsliketheECMTandtheEconomicCommission for
Europe,wheretheMemberStatesmustpresentacommonfront.Withregard
particularly totheproblemoftransit,thiscommonfrontshouldbe.
directedconstantlytowardstheobjectivessetoutin'ChapterIIIofthis
report.

-33-
Annex1
STATISTICAL TABLES
Table1:TransitthroughSwitzerland ,AustriaandFrance
toandfroniItaly
Table2:TransitthroughSwitzerland :road/rail
T^ble3:CarriageofgoodsbyroadbetweentheFederalRepublic
ofGermanyandItalyandtransitthroughGermanyto
andfromItaly
Table4:CarriageofgoodsbyroadbetweentheFederalRepublic
ofGermanyandthecountriesofSEEuropeandtransit
throughGermanytoandfromthosecountries
Table5:Carriagebyrail,roadandinlandwaterwaytoandfrom
theFederalRepublicofGermany
Table6:TransportbyseabetweenGreeceandtheotherMember
States

-34-
IntroductIon
1.Therearenotmanystatistics ontransitoperations .Germansources
inparticularhavebeenused(a)becausetheyarereadilyavailable
and(b)becauseofGermany'sgeographical importancetoroad-haulage
transitthroughAustria.
However,theavailablestatisticsleavemanyquestionsunanswered .
°Withfewexceptionsitisimpossibletoreconstruct theroutesof
road-haulage operation'spartofwhichisbyrailorseaandsoto
identifypurelyinlandroutes.Thisistrueinparticularofroll-on/
roll-offtrafficbetweenGreeceandtheItalianportsandfortraffic
withtheNearandMiddleEast(includingthattoandfromGreekports,
especiallyVolos).ComparisonofDutchandGermantransitstatistics
showsthatmanyofthegoodscarriedbyroadbetweentheNetherlands
-andtheNearandMiddleEastdonotgothroughGermanybutfollow
otherroutes,probablyviaMarseillefromwherethereareseveral
roll-on/roll-offlinestothesouth-eastern Mediterranean and
beyondSuez.Sometimes,suchgoodsareexportedviatheItalian
ports,althoughinsuchcasesthetrafficdoesgothroughAustria.
2.Tables1and2givedetailsoftransitthroughSwitzerland .Table1
highlightstheshiftofthemajortransalpinetrafficflowtoAustria
andFrance;Table2showsthedevelopmentofroad/railtransporton
theSt.Gotthardroute.-
3.Table3showsroadhaulagethroughAustriabytheNorthSouthroute.
4.Tables4and5givedetailsofroadhaulagethroughAustriabythe
North-West/South-EastroutednotincludingtrafficfortheNearand
.MiddleEast,forwhichnooverallfiguresareavailable.Table5
(Germanyonly)alsoshowstransitbyrailandtheDanubethrough
Austria.

Tableog'vesdetailsofsec-bornetraf.CicbetweenGreeceandthe
otherMemberStates,thusgivinganinsightintotheuseofthe
sesvaysesanalternative tooverlandroutes.

TABLIl
TransitthroughSwitzerland ,Austriaand
FrancetoandfromItaly(1970-1978)
i (milliontonnes)
-1970 1978-.
*
RailRoadTotalRailRoadTotal
Switzerland 10.40.110.58.80.49.2
Austria 5.42-78.16.012.318.3
France 5.92.38.29.97.217.1
Total 21.75.Ì26.824.719.94¿>.6
Source:SBB/CFS','
.•\ _ ...
.•"' ~ TABLE2
'« ' " ' ' '-/TransitthroughSwitzerland
Road/rail
3,000tonnes.,gross
(includingvehicles)
Route­ :1978 19791sthalf-1980
-Lugano-Germany -
Netherlands407 418 232-
Italy-Germany-
Netherlands300 493 367
TOTAL 707911 599
.Source:SBB/CFS

-36-
TABLE3
CarriageofgoodsbyroadbetweentheFederal
RepublicofGermanyandItaly,andtransitthrough
GermanytoandfromItaly(1978-79)
000tonnes
ToItaly FromItalyTotal
197819791978197919781979
FRG 4265.44.710.41
J5029.95.151.09296.39871.4
Netherlands 704.1j731.9362.4344.51066.51076.4
Denmark 180.0205.6 134.8150.3314.8355.9
Belgium 82.671.2 56»351.7138.9122.9
UnitedKingdom 14.312.0 19.717.134.029.1
France 1.32.44.9 4..16.25.5
Luxembourg -1.11.12.5 4.,63.65.7
Ireland -0.2 0.10.i0.10.3
TOTAL 5249.85734.85610.65733.4IO.860.411468.2
Source:FederalStatisticalOffice.Wiesbaden.

* TABLE4
CarriageofgoodsbyroadbetweentheFederalRepublic
ofGermanyandthecountriesofSEEuropeandtransit
throughGermany-toandfromthosecountries(1978-79)
000tonnes
From YearYugoslaviaGreeceTUrkeyHungaryRomaniaBulgaria .TOTAL
Germany 19>8222.1171.163.6108.320.611.4597.1
1979258.7213.553.8126.128.812·5693.4
Netherlands .197865.730.014.431.1 .7.42.1154.3
197962.134.916.831.88.62.1156.3
Belgium 197832.728.37.923.8 .2.13.698.4
197928.726.38.224.12.23.593.0
UnitedKingdom197814.59.2-8.614.11.91.4.49.7
197914.58.07.513.22.11.3''46.6
France 19787.93.46.8Λ9.89.4-3.941.2
19796.43.0\5.911.18.14.138.6
Denmark 1978 .3.33.20.90.70.10.38.5
' 19796.110.30.60.61.92.421.9
TOTAL 1978246.2245.2102.2187.841.522.7949.2
1979376.5296.092.8206.951.725.91049.8
To YearYugoslaviaGreeceTurkeyHungaryRomaniaBulgaria Ï0TAL
Germany 1978203.3343/266.0198.139.362.1912.0
1979237.2321.063.5246.338.069.9.975.9
Netherlands 197843.428.88.545.212.010.2148.1
-197943.236.87.148.31,2.510.9.158.8
Belgium 197824.8,'15.512.02σ.44.33.780.7
197924.114.47.121.04.34.0,74.9
UnitedKingdom197814.79.910.69.43.42.550.5
197913.88.98.112.54.62.750.6
France 19789.05.58.110.113.23.249.1
197911.12.75.612.813."4.050.0
Denmark 19782.74.90.31.00.22.311.4
f.19793.15.60.52.00.42.213.8
TOTAL 1978297.9407.8105.5284.272.484.Τ125_.8
1979-332.5389.491.9342.973.693.713-VwO
TOTAL 1978653.0644.1207.7472.01139106.72201.Õ
Fromandto1979709.0685.4184.7549.8U",311?62"73-8I
Source:Fed.Stat.Office,Wiesbaden.

-38 -
TABLE 5
Carriage byrail ,road and inland waterway from and to
theFederal Republic ofGermany (1978-79 )
1978000 tonnes
1979
J
Rail RoadS " ""
JInland
WaterwayRail RoadInland
Waterway
To From To From To From To From To From To From
¡ Italy 3497.7 2481.8 4.266.4 5029.9- - 4475.1 2357.4 4710.4 5161.0-
Yugoslavia 590.5 172.6 222.1 203.3 5.9 107.5 733.8 211.7 258.7 237.7 6.9 38,5
Greece 51.7 73.3 171.1 343.2- - 60.1 58.6 213.5 321.0- -
1 Hungary1317.1 459.7 108.3 198.1 13.0 296.4 1239.3 523.7 126.1 246.3 7.9 535.5
! Romania 426.1 430.0 20.6 39.3 82.8 231.5 669.1 394.9 28.8 38.0 12.7 143.1
Bulgaria 130.0 47.8 11.4 62.1 14.0 90.0 153.8 42.1 12.5 69.9 11.9
'I126.3
Source :Fed .Stat .Office ,Wiesbaden .

-39-
TABLE 6
Transport byseabetween Greece
and theother Member States (1977 )
000 tonnes
ToGreece
/From Greece Total
All
goodsOfwhich
oilAll
goodsof .
which
oilAll ï
goodsof
which
oil
Germany182 3 137 34 319 37
France 579
t163 / 349 77 928 240
Italy2149 1345 1517 913 3666 2258
Netherlands 415 55 882 79 1297 134 .
Belgium 526 12 96 5 622 17
United Kingdom 358 36 405 63 763 99
Ireland•
•••• '
••
•*-
••
•
Denmark 12•
• 93•
• 105•
■·
TOTAL * 4221 ' I614 3479 1171 7700 2785
*Notincluding Ireland ;notincluding oilinthecase ofDenmark .
Source :Statistical Office oftheEuropean Communities .
6

-40
Arms xII
ConmuniLy legislation andproposals forlegislation affecting transit
operations ,
Infras truc fure meapures
Council Decision of28February 1966 instituting aprocedure forconsulta­
tion inrespect oftransport infrastructure investment
Council Decision of20February 1978 instituting aconsultation procedure
andsetting upacommittee inthefield oftransport infrastructure
Proposal for aCouncil Regulation onsupport forprojects ofCommunity
interest intransport infrastructure ,extended toprojects innon-
Community countries .
Measures relating tofrontier crossings
Council Directive of19July 1968 concerning thestandardization of
provisions regarding theduty-free admission offuel contained inthe
fuel-tanks ofcommercial vehicles
Proposal for aCouncil Directive amending theabove Directive
Agreement of23January 1962 oncertain measures tofacilitate customs
clearance ofproducts covered bytheECSC Treaty carried byrail
Tax measures
Proposal for afirst Council Directive concerning theadjustment of
national systems ofcommercial vehicle taxation .
Combined transpor tmeasures
Council Directive of17February 1975 ontheestablishment ofcommon rules
forcertain types c/combined road /rail carriage ofgoods between Member
States ,asamended bytheDirective of19December 1978 (79/5/EEC )
Proposal for aCouncil Decision ontheopening ofnegotiations foran
agreement between theEuropean Economic Community and third countries on
thesyst"n applicable tocertain types ofinternational combined road /rail
transport ofgoods
Proposal for aC.".ncil Directive oncertain measures topromote thedevelop­
ment ofcombined transport
Proosal 7oraCourse 1Regulation (EEC)amending Regulation (EEC)No.1107 /70
-ith 2vi-=wtosup' -'ementing theaystem for thegranting ofaids fortransport

-41-
byrail ,road andInland waterway bytheaddition ofprovisions on
combined transport . ' -
Technical measures : ' .
/ •
Proposal foraCouncil Directive ontheweights anddimensions ofcommercial
road vehicles and oncertain additional technical conditions concerning such
vehicles
Proposal foraCouncil Directive ontheweights andcertain other character­
istics (notincluding dimensions )ofroad vehicles used for£hecarriage
ofgoods
Measures relating tofree movement and access tothemarket
First Council Directive of23July 1962 ontheestablishment ofcommon
rules forcertain types ofcarriage ofgoods byroad between Member States *
asamended bytheDirectives of19December 1972 ,4March 1974 ,14February
1977 ,20February 1978 and20December 1979 •
Council Regulation (EEC)No.117/66of28July 1966 ontheintroduction of
common rules for theinternational carriage ofpassengers bycoach andbus
Council Regulation (EEC)No.516/72of£8February 1972 ontheestablish­
ment ofcommon rules forshuttle services bycoach andbusbetween Member
States ,asamended bytheRegulation of23November 1978
Council Regulation (EEC)No.517/72of28February 1972 ontheintroduction
ofcommon rules forregular andspecial regular services bycoach andbus
between Member States ,,asamended bytheRegulations of20December 1977
and 12June 1978
Council Decision of15October 1975 authorizing theCommission tonegotiate
anAgreement between theEuropean Economic Community andnon-member
) - ' . '' - -
countries ontherules applicable totheinternational carriage ofpassengers
bycoach andbus ,supplemented bytheCouncil Decision of15March 1976
Council Decision of15October 1975 laying down thenegotiating directives
foranAgreement between theEuropean Economic Community andnon-member -
countries ontherules applicable iotheinternational carriage of
passengers bycoach andbus ,asamended bytheCouncil Decision of
20February 1978 'i ,

-42-
Communication fromtheCommissiontotheCouncilconcerningthenegotiation
ofanAgreementb^twenntheEuropeanEconomicCommunityandnon-member
countriesonth^rulesapplicabletotheinternational carriageofpassengers
bycoachandbus,containing aproposalforaCouncilDecisionclarifying
andsupplementing thecharacteristics oftheagreementwhichtheCommission
wasauthorized t:'iatebytheCouncilDecisionof15October1975;the
agreementhasbeeninitialled bytheparties
ProposalforaCouncilRegulation ontheadjustmentofcapacityforthe
carriageofgoodsbyroadforhireorrewardbetweenMemberStates
*
Measuresconcerningvvtes
Agreementof21M&i-ch1955betweentheGovernments oftheMemberStatesof
theEuropeanCoalandSteelCommunitymeetingwithintheCouncilonthe
establishment ofthroughinternational railtariffs
Agreementof28July1956ontheintroduction ofthroughinternational rail­
waytariffsforthecarriageofcoalandsteelthroughSwissterritory
Agreementof26July1957betweentheAustrianFederalGovernmentofthe
onepart,andtheGovernments oftheMemberStatesoftheEuropeanCoal
andSteelCommunityandtheHighAuthorityoftheEuropeanCoalandSteel
Communityoftheotherpart,ontheintroduction ofthroughinternational
railwaytariffsforthecarriageofcoalandsteelthroughtheterritory
oftheRepublicofAustria.
Socialmeasures
CouncilRegulation (33EC)No.543/69of25March1969ontheharmonization
cfcertainsociallegislationrelatingtoroadtransport,asamendedon
severaloccasions.AcodifiedversionoftheRegulation waspublishedin
OJC73of17March1979

-43-
CouncilRegulation (EEC)No.s1463/70of20July1970ontheintroduction
ofrecordingequipmentinroadtransport,aslastamendedbyRegulation
(EEC)No.2828/77of12December1978
>
*
* *
–- "- »
ResolutionoftheEuropeanParliament ontheproblemsoftransport
infrastructure intheCommunity(OJ79of16Decemberi960,p.493)
Resolutions .ontheimprovement oftrafficinfrastructure acrossthe
Alps(OJC49of28June1973,p.12)

•44
ANNEXIII
EXTRACTFROMTHERECORDOFTHEDEBATEOFTHEEUROPEAN
PARLIAiffiNT ON24SEPTEMBER 1979
TransittrafficintheAlpineregion
President
ThenextitemistheOralQuestionwithdebata(Doc.1-296/79)byMr.Seefeld,
Mr,Albers,Mr,Gabert,Mr.Gacto,Mr.Key,Mr.Klinkenborg andMr.Loo,
totheCommission ;
Subject:EuropeansolutionstotheproblemsoftransittrafficinAlpine
region
Intheresolutionitedoptedon16January1579onthebasisofareport
byitsCommitteeonRegionalPolicy,RegionalplanningandTransport,the
EuropeanParliamenturgedthatprioritybegiventothefollowingtransport
policyobjectiveswhichareofimmediateimportance :
improvement ofthesituationoftransittrafficthroughAustriaand
Switzerland ,inparticular byallocatingroadcostsfairly,improving
infrastructures andencouraging .combinedtransportmethods.
On17June1978theCouncilofEECTransportMinistersadoptedastatement
ontheAustrianroadtraffictaxinwhichitnoted:
"thattheCommissionwillfollowup,fromthepointofviewoftransitand
inaccordancewithCoxianunitylegislation and,policytrends,inthefield
ofinfrastructure andmarketorganization ,thebasicproblemswhicharise
inrelationtootherthirdcountriestoo,willcontributetodeveloping
satisfactory solutionsattheEuropeanlevelandwillreportbacktothe
CouncilonpossibleactiontobetakenbytheCommunity."

-45
1.What 'specific steps hasthe 'Commission taken so .farinoraer .to
comply with theEuropean Parliament 'srequest andpropose howtheCommunity
might contribute tothedevelopment ofEuropean solutions tothsproblem -
"ofensuring smooth transit forroad andrail "traffic through theAlpine
region ?
2. •Isitaware the .Greek accession totheCommunity -will exacerbate the
/
problems oftraffic infrastructure infcheAlpine region "(bottlenecks ,an
increase intheaccident rate anddamage tothe»environment ),and that
similar problems oftransit traffic through Yugoslavia will also have to
beconsidered ?
3.What form ofcooperation inthetraffic sector does theCommission
envisage with Austria ,Swit.zer7i.and andYugoslavia ,toensure thesmoothest ,
possible traffic ,fl'ow between thevarious Member States oftlhaCommunity
andhence topromote trade ?
4.Does itrecognise that first andforemost ,such cooperation must
include theplanning ,extension ,asd 'funding ofthetraffic infrastructure
andalso cover questions oftaxation ,transit authorizations ,the
encouragement ofcombined transport andofcommercial and technical
cooperation between railway undertakings and ,finally ,arelaxation of
frontier formalities ? - * v
5.When does theCommission intend tosubmit thereport referred toin
theabove-mentioned Cowicil statement ?Cnitindicate thebroad outlines ,
oftheproposed measures ? /
Mr,Sefefeld hasagreed tocutshort hisspeaking time .Iwould askall
speakers todolikewise . .
Icall Mr,Seefeld .

Mr. Seefeld (D) ' >
ν
Mr. President ,inorder tobebrief for thssake ofmycolleagues Iwill
I
limit myself toone ortwocomments .Yournve the text ofthequestion
before you .Unfortunately ,Imust begiii bysaying that there isstill no
uniform transport policy intheEuropean Communities and itisfor this
reason ,,among others ,that wem:.31ask anumber ofquestions tothe
Commission astowhynosolution hasbeen found totheproblems oftransit
traffic intheAlpine region .
Itisquite clear that theEuropean Communities cannot pretend tobe
unaffected bytheproblems facing Austria andSwitzerland ,despite the
fact that they are third countries .Inorder toreach Italy ,aCommunity
country ,byroad orrail itisnecessary togothrough Switzerland or
Austria .Itwas forthis reason that last year^we passed aresolution in
.*
this House ,concerning theimprovement ofthesituation oftransit traffic
through Austria and Switzerland sandwealso declared that this should be
achieved byallocating road costs fairly ,improving infrastructures and
encouraging combined transport methods .Last year theCouncil ofEEC
Transport Ministers considered this question ,and inJune 1978 decided
that the CoramissioTi should follow "up,inthefield ofinfrastructure and
ma^cet organisation ,thebasic problems which arise inrelation tootherJ}:
third countries .TheCommission hasbeen given the task ofcontributing
tothedevelopment ofasatisfactory solution attheEuropean level ,so
O '
that theproolems ofthese countries canbeincluded inanoverg^l European
transport scheme .The Corrjmission isthen tosubmit proposals onpossible
initiatives totheCouncil .
Last year Austria attracted considerable attention with its taxprogramme .
IntheEuropean Communities thequestion arose astowhich measures we
could take toprevent anyhindrance totraffic between theCommunity
countries concerned .

Wemust'alsoconsiderChefuture,becausefrom1981onwardsGreecewillbe
amemberoftheCommunities,andtrafficbetweenGreeceandthenine
presentmembersinbothdirectionsmustpassnotonlythroughAustriabut
alsothroughYugoslavia.Therefore,inouropinion,closecooperationis
necessarySetweentheCommunities an:dthesecountriesoftransit.Wealso
feelthatwehavetheobligation ,tohelpthetransitcountriestocope.
"withthetrafficflowsresultingfromtheirgeographical situation.
Forthisreason,some,ofmycolleaguesintheCommitteeonTransport *and.■.
IhaveaskedtheCommissiontodaytoanswerourfivequestions.In
essence,Ms.President,ourmainconcernistopnsureawarenessofthe'
problemsoftransittrafficandtoascertaintheextenttowhichthird
countriesare-abletocopewiththem,becausetransitthroughAustria,
Switzerland andinfutureYugoslaviaisimportantforintra-Community
traffic.Thisbrieflyexplainswhywehaveputforwardthisquestion '
^hope,Kr,President,thatyoufindmyreasonssatisfactory ..
President-IcallMr.Burke. \
Mr.Burke.,MemberoftheCommission.,
Mr.President,thequestionputtotheCommissionraisesallthedifficulties
encountered bytransit-trafficacrosscertainthirdcountries,difficulties
whichwillbecomemoreacuteas&result"ofGreekmembership.Thequestion
stressesinparticularthedifficulties encountered intheAlpineregions,
ontheNorth-South andNorth-West,South-Eastaxes.Theimprovement of
transittrafficacrossAustria,YugoslaviaandSwitzerlandisoneofthe
Commission'smajorpre-occupations intheareaoftransportpolicy.It
involvesthedevelopmentofamulti-lateral solutiongoingbeyondthe
Communityframeworkandtakingaccountoftheinterestsbothofthetransit
countriesandofthecountrieswhichrequirethetransits -
TheguidelinesofourcommontransportpolicyasdefinedbytheCommission
initsmemorandumtotheCouncilofOctober1973,andbythereport
presentedrecentlybyMr.SeefeldonbehalfoftheCommitteeonTransport,

pct-'cule':e fchgieal.^czacoherentandopentransportsystemtaking
accountofCorrmiuni':ytransi';trafficacrossthirdcountries .Atthe
presenttimeattentionisconcentrated onAustriaandonroadtransport
aspectsbecauseoftheparticularly acutesituationcausedinthat
countrybytheintroduction ofataxonroadtransportofgoods.
Now,withregardtothefivequestionsasked,Iwouldbrieflyreplyas
follows;First,theCommissionisactivelyparticipating inthesearch
forasolutionintheinternational organization concerned,notablythe
EuropeanConferenceofTransportMinistersandtheEconomicCommission
forEuropeinGeneva.Furthermore ,ithastakenaseriesofinitiatives
intheframeworkofthecommontransportpolicywhichwouldhelpto
reducethecurrentdifficulties .InadditiontheCommission haslaunched
astudyonbottlenecks inthetransportsector,astudywhichisnot
limitedtotheCommunityterritory ,TheCommissionnoteswithregret
that,inspiteofitsinitiatives ,veryfewconcretemeasureshavebeen
adopted.Inparticular ,importantproposalssuchasthatrelatingtothe
financingoftransportinfrastructure ofCommunityinterest,ortothe
harmonizatioriofthestructureoftaxesoncommercialvehicles,havenot
yetbeenadoptedbythi.Council,
Secondly,theaccessionofGreecetotheCommunityposesthetransit
problemdirectly.Duringthecourseofthenegotiationsitwasagreed
that,onthesignatureoftheinstrumentofaccession ,theCommission
wouldundertakeexploratory conversations withYugoslavia ,andAustria
concerningthesystemapplicabletointernational readtransportofgoods
inordertoseekthen;eims,ifnecessarybytheconclusions ofagreements ,
whichwouldpermittheapplication totrafficoriginating inordestined
forGreeceofthemeasuresapplicable totrafficbetweentheMemberStates,
TheCommissi^"sserviceshavealreadyhaddiscussions withanAustrian
delegation ,andsimilarcontactswiththeYugoslavian delegationwillsoon
takeplace,Thesediscussions maybefollowedbynegotiations .,Inits
studiesprogrammefor1980theCommissionhasprovidedforasubstantial
appropriation Inordertoundertakesstudywhichwouldpermitthe

-49-
identification onthebasisofanimprovedknowledgeofthetraffic,of
theinfrastructure needsof\thenewMemberStates,TheCommission counts .
onthesupportofParliamentfortheentryofthisappropriation ,inthe
budgetinordertopermittheproposedstudyprogrammetobecarriedout.
Thirdly,intheareaofcooperation withthethreemaintransitthird
countries;Ishouldpointoutthatthecooperation agreementbetweenthe
CommunityandYugoslavia,whichwehopewill.beconcludedintherelatively
nearfixture,includesatransportsectionwithclausesrelatingtotransit,
particularly tothedevelopment oftransportinfrastructures .In1975the
CommissionsubmittedaproposaltotheCouncilontheopeningof
negotiations foranagreementbetweentheCommunityandthirdcountries
concerningtherulesapplicable .intheareaofaccesstothemarketfor
certaincombined'rail/roadinternational goodstransport./Thisproposal
is8tillbeforetheCouncil.-
Inaddition,theCommissionisnowpreparinganoverallplanforpromoting
asubstantial development ofcombinedtranspbrtbyactionscoveringthe
fieldsofinfrastructure .,equipmentandcommercialoperation.The
CommissionenvisagessubmittingproposalsinthisconnectiontotheCouncil
beforetheendofthisyear,andonceaconsensusemergesatCommunity
level,itwillproposetheconclusionofanagreementwiththirdcountries,
particularly Switzerland andAustria,inordertoensureeffective
collaboration withthesecountries.
Finallyonthispoint,itmaybepossible,onthebasisofgeneral
exchangesof'viewwiththirdcountriesontransportmatters,todevelop '
cooperationinsuchawayastohelpsolvetheproblemsfacingus.
Fourthly,theCommissionsharestheconvictionoftheauthorsofthe
questionthatthiscooperation mustextendtotheareascitedinpoint4
ofthequestion.Thisistheaimofthestudiesonwhichitisengaged
andtheinitiativeswhichitproposestotake. -
AndIwouldliketostressthefollowingmatter.-Whereinfrastructure
financing-whichiscentraltoanyeffectivepolicy,isconcernedthe

Commission hasput forwc .danappropriate system mitsproposal for a
regulation onfinanci.fi aid forprojects ofCommunity interest .The
geographical field ofapplication ofthis regulation islimited to
Community territory .Greek accession and theneed toensure ease ofmove­
ment ofagrowing transit traffic ofCommunity interest across theAlpine
countries areconsiderations which would plead infavour ofanextension
ofthefield ofapplication ofthis directive tocertain projects of
Community interest outside theCommunity borders .Fiscal harmonization
also constitutes apositive factor inthe improvement oftransit .This is
why theCommission attaches considerable importance totheadoption bythe
Council ofthe first directive onthe harmonization oftaxes oncommercial
vehicles ,which represent afirst step towards acommon system ofinfra­
structure charging -asystem inwhich many neighbouring third countries
have expressed aninterest .
Fifthly ,inspite ofthedifficulties arising from staff shortage ,towhich
Mr. Seefeld drew theParliament 'sattention inhisrecent report ,the
Commission wishes tocomplete thereport mentioned intheCouncil declara­
tion of12June 1978 ,early next year ,taking account ofthenumber and
complexity oftheelements which itmust contain .Werely heavily onthe
European Parliament tobring tofruition the initiatives which wehave
taken ,andhave yet totake ,with aview toresolving theproblems created
forCommunity transport bytransit across third countries .Thank you
Mr. President .
A
o
© o
The other speakers inthedebate -Mr. Gabert ,Mr. Fuchs ,Mr.Carossino ,
Mr.Baudis andMr.Colleselli -allstressed theimportance andneed for
Community action inthe transit sector .This action depends upon
substantial progress with thecommon transport policy .

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