WRITTEN QUESTION E-3151/01 by Luciano Caveri (ELDR) to the Commission. Mont Blanc tunnel.
Date: 2001-11-14
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: France, Italy, commercial vehicle, rail network, road safety, trans-European network, transport network, tunnel

C 147 E/116

Official Journal of the European Communities

EN

20.6.2002

(2002/C 147 E/120)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3151/01

by Luciano Caveri (ELDR) to the Commission

(14 November 2001)

Subject: Mont Blanc tunnel

The Italian and French Transport Ministers have set 15 December 2001 as the date for the reopening of
the Mont Blanc tunnel following repairs and announced at the same time that it would reopen for heavy
vehicles several weeks later, with traffic running one way and alternating direction between the Mont Blanc
and Fréjus tunnels as if they formed one, twin-tubed tunnel, as was reported. This decision has sparked off
widespread criticism in the region, albeit for very different reasons.

The two tunnels are on routes, both of which, at the request of Italy and France, form part of the trans-
European transport network and are included in the White Paper on Transport. Although this document
came out very recently, it is still based on the assumption that traffic will run both ways in the two Alpine
tunnels. Given the above, how does the Commission view the recent Italian-French decision in relation to
Community law? Does it not consider it more appropriate to agree to the proposal which has the support
of a large majority of the population in the Valle d’Aosta to take the necessary measures to ensure
stringent restrictions in the volume of TIR traffic?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(11 January 2002)

The Commission considers that the Mont Blanc tunnel can only be reopened on the basis of safety criteria
and when all the safety conditions have been fulfilled.
It is not however within the Commission’s
prerogatives to give it prior approval to re-opening the Mont Blanc tunnel, or to specific traffic rules. The
carrying out of studies and projects, as well as the verification of safety and traffic conditions with a view
to re-opening the tunnel, remain the exclusive responsibility of the French and Italian national authorities.
This is applicable in the case of both heavy and light vehicles.

Assurances as to safety have been given in turn both by the French and the Italian Transport Ministers,
namely Mr Gayssot and Mr Lunardi. The conditions for re-opening the tunnel ought to be finalised some
time in December 2001.

It is important to emphasise that,
in the White Paper ‘European transport policy for 2010: time to
decide’ (1) the Commission announced that it would propose European regulations establishing minimum
standards to guarantee a high level of safety for the users of road and rail tunnels. To this end, it will be
putting forward a proposal to the Parliament and to the Council at the beginning of 2002. The proposed
legislation is likely to cover all aspects of safety, including traffic rules.

in order to manage inland transport

The Commission considers that,
flows in the Alpine region,
particularly in the Mont-Blanc sector, the absolute priority in the medium term is to construct and put into
service as soon as possible the two railway lines already identified in the 1996 guidelines (2) for the trans-
European transport network, namely the Lyon-Turin link and the Brenner tunnel link. It also advocates an
approach to better reflect the costs of each mode of transport in order to facilitate a modal shift of balance
in favour of the least polluting modes.

(1) COM(2001) 370 final.
(2) Decision No 1692/96/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 1996 on Community guidelines

for the development of the trans-European transport network, OJ L 228, 9.9.1996.