Activites

• 2004/08/06 Additional information
• 2001/04/05 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • T5-0193/2001 summary

    The European Parliament adopted the the report by Mr Felipe CAMISON ASENSIO (EPP/ED, E) on the granting of aid for the co-ordination of transport by rail, road and inland waterway. However, the report was subject to a number of amendments which aim to improve the commission text: - it was considered inappropriate to impose a three-year limit for the granting of aid for the use of infrastructure. Aid schemes, according to the Parliament, should have a duration of five years, which would give transport undertakings greater legal certainty and enable them to plan with greater confidence; - the Commission itself should monitor the aid and ensure that competition between transport modes and between Member States is not distorted; - short sea shipping, including combined transport operations at sea ports should be brought within the scope of the directive; - passenger transport should also be elgible for aid; - aid should not have to be notified if it does not exceed EUR 100,000 over a three-year period.�

• 2001/04/04 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
• 2001/03/20 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
  • A5-0096/2001
• #X013
• 2000/12/20 Council Meeting
  • X013 summary

    The Council held a policy debate on public service obligations in passenger transport by rail, road and inland waterway. Winding up the debate, the Presidency noted that there was a convergence of views on a number of very positive points: the fact that the Commission's proposal for a Regulation guarantees a fundamental role for public passenger services as services of general interest; - the need to recognise that the performance of public service requirements sometimes calls for financial compensation which must be clearly found to be compatible with the Treaty; - the importance of social aspects needing to be taken into account in public service contract award procedures. Environmental aspects were also mentioned. During this discussion, some Member States thought it ill-advised to open up the specific area of rail passenger transport to competition at a time when a similar approach had just been agreed regarding international rail freight carriage. Several Member States argued the importance of ensuring the permanence of integrated services where there was a recognised need. Several Member States also thought that the responsible authorities should be able to opt for the direct management of such services. Several Member States were likewise insistent on the need to provide for more flexible provisions which would take into account both local situations and subsidiarity. Finally, it was noted that a number of Member States had, with the responsible authorities and operators concerned, set up public transport services on the basis of existing Community law which called for major investment, particularly from operators. These Member States thought that the duration of contracts should be extended and longer transitional periods provided for in order that a fair return on investment for the benefit of society at large might be guaranteed.�

• #2292
• 2000/10/02 Council Meeting
  • 2292
• 2000/09/08 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
• 2000/07/26 Legislative proposal published
  • COM(2000)0005 summary

    PURPOSE: Proposal for a Regulation concerning the granting of aid for the co-ordination of transport by rail, road and inland waterway. CONTENT: Since the 1970s, road, rail and inland waterways have gone through major processes of liberalisation, at various speeds and to differing extents. In addition, various guidelines and other instruments relating to Articles 87 and 88 EC Treaty have been published. Although Council Regulation 1107/70/EEC has to some extent been amended to deal with these developments, such amendment has been piecemeal and there is a clear case for a wholesale simplification and consolidation of the text so that every Article has a purpose suited to the needs of the current context. The Commission believes the best way of achieving such clarity and simplicity is to replace the existing Regulation with an entirely new Regulation. One of the functions of the proposed Regulation is to clarify how the application of Article 73 EC Treaty will reflect the manner in which the transport market has developed over time. Article 73 certainly has a role to play with regard to the financing of infrastructure. The present Regulation proposes therefore a comprehensive exception for aid for the development and eventually operation of transport infrastructure which benefits infrastructure managers and, in the freight sector, aid for the benefit of users of transport infrastructure which compensates them for the unpaid cost of competing modes. The proposed Regulation implements the part of Article 73 EC Treaty which concerns co-ordination of transport activities concerning rail, road and inland waterways. It follows, in particular, that maritime transport facilities are not covered by the regulation. The main provisions of the proposed Regulation are the following: - The impact of tendering and tendering principles; - Practical illustrations of the need for an exception include public private partnerships, Trans-European Networks, terminals, state support for railway infrastructure and networks; - Relation between state aid rules and charging rules. Community law includes rules on charging with regard to road transport. As already proposed by the Commission, there are reasons to adopt rules with regard to railway charging. Therefore, it is necessary to ensure that any future Community requirements on infrastructure are not undermined by Member States financing infrastructure managers to a point where they can 'make ends meet' without recovering the costs required by such legislation for the users of the infrastructure; - Requirements for the aid; - State aid to compensate for unpaid costs of competing modes. Here, the aid must form part of a scheme that treats different undertakings within the same mode equally and moreover, it must relate to goods transport; - Notification of aid. Aid granted under the proposed regulation is notifiable by virtue of Article 88(3) EC Treaty unless the regulation provides otherwise; - Monitoring, revocation and transitional arrangements.�

  • DG ['Energy and Transport'],

Documents

• Legislative proposal published: COM(2000)0005
• Debate in Council: 2292
• Debate in Council: X013
• Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading: A5-0096/2001
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T5-0193/2001

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)