WRITTEN QUESTION E-3640/03 by Herbert Bösch (PSE)and Johannes Swoboda (PSE) to the Commission. Withdrawal of direct cross-border rail connections.
Date: 2003-12-09
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: Austria, common transport policy, international transport, liberalisation of the market, rail transport, trans-European network, transport network, transport statistics

27.3.2004

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

C 78 E/839

Answer given by Mr Fischler on behalf of the Commission

(8 January 2004)

Under CAP reform principles the Commission is proposing that the national ceiling be calculated using the
average of the payments received by growers during the reference period. For olive oil this is the 2000/
2001 to 2002/2003 marketing years. It should be noted that in all three leading producer countries
(Greece, Italy, Spain) the national guaranteed quantity was exceeded during that period.

Under the reform proposal presented by the Commission additional trees planted after 1 May 1998 will be
excluded from any support. As the Honourable Member says, new trees do not reach full productivity until
ten years after planting. There are therefore a number of groves eligible under the new provisions that
during the reference period produced less (and hence generated less aid) than a grove of mature trees. It is
to deal with this type of situation that Council Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 (1) requires Member States
to apply a percentage reduction (not more than 3 %) to reference amounts in order to constitute a national
reserve. By using this to establish reference amounts for farmers in a special situation or in areas
undergoing restructuring Member States will be able to ensure equality of treatment for all producers.

On numbers of young olive trees, the Olistat study in 1998 gave for Spain a figure of 66,4 million (23 %)
out of a total of 287,9 million maintained trees. For the other Member States the corresponding
proportion was France 11 %, Greece 14 %, Italy 19 % and Portugal 14 %.

(1) Council Regulation (EC) No 1782/2003 of 29 September 2003 establishing common rules for direct support
schemes under the common agricultural policy and establishing certain support schemes for farmers and amending
Regulations (EEC) No 2019/93, (EC) No 1452/2001, (EC) No 1453/2001, (EC) No 1454/2001, (EC) No 1868/94,
(EC) No 1251/1999,
(EEC) No 2358/71 and (EC) No 2529/2001,
OJ L 270, 21.10.2003.

(EC) No 1673/2000,

(EC) No 1254/1999,

(2004/C 78 E/0893)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3640/03

by Herbert Bösch (PSE)
and Johannes Swoboda (PSE) to the Commission

(9 December 2003)

Subject: Withdrawal of direct cross-border rail connections

From 14 December 2003 new train timetables will become operational
in Austria, Switzerland and
Germany. Certain direct overnight train services, viz. Vienna/Brussels (EN 324 Donau Walzer), Brussels/
Vienna (EN 325 Donau Walzer), Brussels/Chur (D 499) and Chur/Brussels (D 499) no longer appear in the
new timetables. The Vienna/Amsterdam, Amsterdam/Vienna direct overnight connection had already been
withdrawn in mid-December 2002. These services are being or have been discontinued even although the
trains were and are generally well used, and gave a significant boost to summer and Christmas tourism in
resorts in Austria. Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) were concerned to maintain the service to and from
Brussels and Amsterdam, but the railway companies in Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands were
opposed, for various reasons, to continuing them. ÖBB does not, however, have the capacity to maintain
these trans-European rail connections on its own.

Can the Commission state how many direct trains between Member State capitals and third-countries
bordering on the EU have been withdrawn in the last five years?

What action is the Commission taking to promote cross-border passenger transport, in particular against
to promote trans-European networks? What arrangements is the
the backdrop of EU initiatives
Commission making to ensure that
the liberalisation process at European level will not mean a
deterioration in the service to users? Can the Commission provide a breakdown of the take-up of TEN
appropriations by Member State over the last five years? What impact does failure to implement railway
projects have on rail users?

C 78 E/840

Official Journal of the European Union

EN

27.3.2004

Can the Commission Member responsible state what trends have been identified in cross-border freight
and passenger traffic by road and by rail in the European Union since 1995, and provide a forecast of
future trends over the next ten years? What has been the trend in transit traffic through Austria since
1995, and what scenarios does the Commission Member anticipate for Austrian transit traffic over the
next ten years?

What priority should, in the Commission Member’s opinion, be set for cross-border freight and passenger
traffic in coming years in the European Union, in Austria in particular, as between rail or road? What will
be the impact on the ease of access to particular European regions by public transport? What actions has
the Commission already taken to implement its objectives, and what further actions will follow?

Answer given by Mrs de Palacio on behalf of the Commission

(6 February 2004)

The Commission is aware that a large number of international train services operated cooperatively
between national railway undertakings have been discontinued. According to information received from
these undertakings, the services in question often made heavy losses, and in the absence of any public
service subsidies, the undertakings chose to withdraw them for reasons of sound financial management.

Cumbersome cooperation arrangements and the absence of any commercial benefit for many undertakings
involved in the cooperation are another reason why these services are not being maintained.

The Commission considers that this sector of the market would benefit from being liberalised in order to
promote a more commercial approach and allow a single undertaking to assume responsibility for the
services from start to finish.

The implementation of the first railway package in 2003 created a new legal framework which should
facilitate such operations by international groups of undertakings and ultimately by any interested railway
undertaking, when the services are fully liberalised in accordance with Parliament’s wishes. The creation of
RailNetEurope in December 2003, which brings together all infrastructure managers, will promote the
development of international train paths which can be used by undertakings wishing to set up such
services on a more dynamic commercial basis (cid:1) essential if they are to head off the strong competition
from low-price airlines and regular bus services, which are developing rapidly in Europe.

The Commission, being aware of the challenges facing the rail sector in the transport system, has
undertaken in the first and second railway packages, with which Parliament is very familar, and in the
third package, soon to be adopted, to establish a comprehensive European regulatory framework intended
to revitalise the sector by allowing it to offer safe, high-quality services on a European scale, the only
prerequisite for its future success given the other modes of transport which are constantly being improved.
It hopes to have the firm support of Parliament in this long-term project, which will involve a major
cultural change in the rail sector.

The Commission will send the information requested on traffic statistics and investments directly to the
Honourable Members and to Parliament’s Secretariat.

(2004/C 78 E/0894)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3641/03

by Antonios Trakatellis (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(9 December 2003)

Subject: Definition of ‘forest’: divergence between the definition in a Greek bill and in the Forest Focus

regulation

The Regulation concerning monitoring of forests and environmental interactions in the Community (Forest
Focus) (1) provides that ‘forest’ means land with tree crown cover (or equivalent stocking level) of more
than 10 % and area of more than 0,5 ha (Article 3.a). The Greek government recently tabled a bill in the