Activites

• 2004/04/30 Final act published in Official Journal
  • Decision 2004/884
  • OJ L 201 07.06.2004, p. 0001-0055
• 2004/04/30 Final act signed
• 2004/04/29 End of procedure in Parliament
• 2004/04/21 Decision by Parliament, 2nd reading
  • T5-0332/2004 summary

    The European Parliament adopted a resolution drafted by Philip Charles BRADBOURN (EPP-ED, UK) and approved the common position.�

• 2004/04/19 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 2nd reading
  • A5-0278/2004
• 2004/04/14 Council position published
  • 05762/1/2004 summary

    The Council subscribes to the necessity that the Community legal framework governing the development of the trans-European transport network be adapted to the needs of an enlarged Europe so as to achieve a coherent, efficient and sustainable transport system. The Council introduced the following amendments: - as regards the "priorities" for the trans-European transport network : the Council highlights the importance of promoting the interconnection of national networks, whilst also taking into consideration the high transport costs of islands and peripheral areas. The common position refers generally to the gradual achievement of an interoperable rail network including routes adapted for freight transport. The Council also subscribes to the promotion of long-distance and short sea shipping as well as to the development of sustainable mobility of persons and goods; - environmental protection in the framework of transport projects: the Council clearly states that that Member States shall take account of the results of environmental assessments in the preparation of plans and programmes. The Commission shall consider these results in its report on the guidelines and in possible legislative proposals for their review; - introduction of the new concept of the "motorways of the sea": the specific projects - which give concrete expression to the concept of "motorways of the sea" - shall be defined by the Commission within 3 years. The Council is of the opinion that this new framework should also allow for existing links to be improved; in that regard, it should be possible to promote transport of persons and goods, when freight is dominant. The common position states unequivocally that public funding (start-up aid) in the framework of "motorways of the sea" may not lead to distortions of competition. This aid should be granted on the basis of the same criteria as those applicable under the Marco Polo programme, whilst the granting of Community financial assistance under the two instruments should not be cumulative; - the Council endorses the possibility to designate an European Coordinator in order to coordinate the implementation of projects. The Council emphasises in its common position the particular competence of the Coordinator for cross-border projects and the importance of the cooperation with Member States in fulfilling the tasks assigned to the Coordinator; - with regard to the projects of common interest, which are considered priority projects : the Council's common position underlines the importance of speeding up the implementation of the TEN-T projects, the Council welcomes the provisions on the declaration of European interest for Trans-national projects (Article 19a), which will allow a priority treatment of these projects in the framework of the Community funding. The Council states that this declaration is made in accordance with the Treaty. Given that cooperation between all Member States is a main element for the realisation of the projects, the Council deems it appropriate that the Commission consults all Member States concerned in case of a significant delay. Considering the financial and technical importance of the projects, the situation shall be examined by the Commission in an active follow-up, possibly resulting in the adoption of appropriate measures, while Member States have the opportunity to submit observations. The Commission should refrain from any measure that would penalisea Member State not responsible for the delay. As regards coordinated actions and trans-national enquiries concerning technically and financially indivisible cross-border sections, the Council is of the view that the Member States concerned shall deploy their best efforts within the existing framework. The Council could agree to the list of priority projects as proposed by the Commission - which was established on the basis of the work of the Van Miert High Level Group -, on which work should start before 2010; for technical reasons, one project was added to the list. The Council's common position incorporates the main features of the amendments as adopted by the European Parliament in its first reading of the proposal of 30 May 2002 and its renewed referral of 11 March 2004 respectively. However, and as a matter of principle, in the common position, no reference is made to specific projects in the text of the recitals or in that of the enacting terms; such references can only be found in Annex III, where the projects are clearly identified. - the Council shares Parliament's view that, in accordance with the provisions of the Treaty, any decision on Community guidelines for the development of trans-European transport network, including on specific projects following these guidelines, has to be taken via the co-decision procedure; - the Council shares Parliament's concerns in relation to the protection of the environment in the framework of the preparation and realisation of transport projects. The provisions on the strategic environmental assessment have been adapted accordingly; - fully in keeping with Parliament's opinion, the Council has introduced some modifications of the text in order to underline the necessity of territorial cohesion by linking islands, peripheral regions and regional airports to the network. Furthermore, the common position reflects the Council's agreement with Parliament concerning the importance of inland waterways; - like Parliament, the Council is of the opinion that public support in the form of start-up aid for "motorways of the sea" projects should not lead to distortion of competition. The Council also endorses that waterways or canals linking two motorways of the sea or sections thereof shall be part of the TEN-T and that activities ensuring year-round navigability may form a project; - as regards the European Coordinator, the Council adheres to Parliament's view that the Parliament has a role to play in the designation of Coordinator and should be informed about his work. The common position reflects furthermore the importance of the consultation of regional and local authorities; - finally, Annex III on priority projects: several amendments to priority projects in Annex III of the Parliament are accepted: clarification of alignment at Divaca and Ronchi south in project 6; explicit mention of Algeciras-Bobadilla freight line as part of project 16; explicit mention of the North/Baltic Sea canal; inclusion of Prague-Linz as a branch of project 22. The inland waterway project Seine-Scheldt is also accepted as a new project no 30, as it supported both by the Common Position and the Parliament.�

• 2004/03/11 Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
  • T5-0173/2004 summary

    The European Parliament adopted the resolution drafted by Philip BRADBOURN (EPP-ED, UK) and made several amendments to the Commission's proposals. (Please see the document dated 17/02/2004.) Parliament also inserted the following amendments: -the projects of common interest of the trans-European network of motorways of the sea may also include activities which have wider benefits and are not linked to certain ports, such as ice-breaking, dredging operations and information systems, including traffic management and electronic reporting systems; -if the evaluation and enquiry procedures result in the conclusion that the project or projects in question are likely to have undesired social, economic or environmental consequences, Member States shall consult with the Commission with a view to mitigating such consequences, including the option of withdrawing the project or projects from the priority list; -the Community should concentrate its own resources on reinforcing the basic infrastructure before moving on to the construction of major infrastructure projects with a high economic and environmental impact; -the Commission shall publish a clear framework for financial intervention, annexed to the Community guidelines, which shall state the type of expenditure eligible in terms of equipment, infrastructure and start-up aid, and the procedures for intervention by the various sources of Community funding, namely the TEN budget, the ERDF and the Cohesion Fund; -waterways or canals which link two European motorways of the sea and make a substantial contribution to shortening sea routes, increasing efficiency and saving shipping time shall form part of the trans- European network of motorways of the sea; There are several amendments relating to the 29 priority projects selected by the Commission. Parliament withdrew the bridge project over the Straits of Messina from the priority list. The other amendments to the list of priority projects include: -extension of project 16 for the Sines-Madrid-Paris rail link; -on project 18, measures to improve navigability between Straubing and Vilshofen; -project 21 on motorways of the sea is redefined so that there is a distinction between the Atlantic zone and the North Sea zone. Furthermore, the Commission shall, within one year, identify and publish a list of specific projects upon which work may commence during the current programming period, for each of the seas concerned; -extension of project 25 regarding the Brno/Bratislava-Vienna motorway; -extension of Project 29 to the Black Sea; -two new projects, 29a and 29b. The first concerns the Seine-Schelde River; navigation project, and the second the Railway axis Praha-Linz-Ljubljana. Parliament called for its role in monitoring and controlling new TEN project designs to be enhanced. Parliament must be consulted if the Commission decides to withdraw a project from the priority list. Finally, an amendment introduces a legal basis for the Quick Start list establishing that the European Commission may propose to Parliament and the Council to take forward certain projects on a priority basis.�

• 2004/03/10 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
• 2004/02/17 Committee report tabled for plenary, reconsultation
  • A5-0110/2004
• 2004/02/17 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
• #2551
• 2003/12/05 Council Meeting
• #X019
• 2003/12/04 Council Meeting
• 2003/10/01 Amended legislative proposal for reconsultation published
  • COM(2003)0564
  • DG ['Energy and Transport'],
• 2003/10/01 Formal reconsultation of Parliament
• #X017
• 2002/10/03 Council Meeting
  • X017
• 2002/09/26 Modified legislative proposal published
  • COM(2002)0542 summary

    The modified proposal incorporates the text or substance of the Parliament's amendments aiming at strengthening certain elements or clarifying the text of the initial proposal. With regard to Recitals, the following elements have been integrated: - the inclusion of 'international mobility' as a key objective of the TEN-T policy; - a reference to the need to improve the consistency between the TEN-T guidelines and the programming of financial instruments available at Community level (Structural Funds, Cohesion Fund, and the TEN budget); - a reference to promotion, as a priority, of modes of transport that cause less damage to the environment; - a reference to the environmental assessment for new plans and programmes, as envisaged by Directive 2001/42/CE; - a reference to the objectives set out in the White Paper: 'European Transport policy for 2010: time to decide'; in particular the objective of decoupling economic and transport growth and in this context reducing traffic congestion, especially on roads, and promoting a modal shift; - a reference to the promotion of inland waterway shipping is included; - a reference to the future revision of the guidelines and short sea shipping; - In recital 11, a clarification on the preparation of the extension of the TEN-T to the Candidate Countries; - a reference to the consequences of enlargement on the appropriations for the transeuropean networks in the next financial perspective. As regards the priorities of the guidelines, the following elements have been integrated: - a reference to the objective of balanced territorial development in the second priority; - the strengthening in the fourth priority of the measures to promote short sea shipping and inland shipping; - the strengthening in the sixth priority of the objective of promoting intermodality by establishing intermodal terminals or deploying intelligent transport systems. As regards environmental protection, the following elements have been modified in response to one of the European Parliament's amendments giving a stronger role to the Commission to carry out strategic environmental assessment and to develop methods to carry out such assessment. The initial prposal is amended in order to clarify the co-ordinating role of the Committee established under Article 18.2. In addition, it is indicated that the Commission shall continue to develop improved methods of analysis for strategically assessing the environmental impact (as well as economic, safety and social impacts) of the whole network and for implementing the environmental assessments, referred to in the Directive 2001/42/EC on the crossborder corridors and projects. As well as these clarifications, it should be noted that the amended proposal covers a broader range of infrastructures and facilities allowing integration of rail transport services with air transport services but also with road and maritime transport services; - includes River Information Systems as part of the inlandwaterway trans-European network; - indicates that the report on the implementation of the guidelines shall be produced every two years and shall contain information on the breakdown between national, Community and other funding.�

  • DG ['Energy and Transport'],
• #2438
• 2002/06/17 Council Meeting
  • 2438
• 2002/05/30 Debate in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament
  • T5-0264/2002 summary

    The European Parliament adopted the report drafted by Philip BRADBOURN (EPP-ED, UK) on the trans-European transport network. (Please refer to the document dated 18/04/02.) Parliament stated that the network must: -ensure the sustainable mobility of persons and goods within an area without internal frontiers under the best possible social and safety conditions, while helping to achieve the Community's objectives, particularly regarding the environment and competition, and contribute to strengthening economic and social cohesion; -be fully compatible with Community environmental legislation; -contribute to decoupling economic growth from transport growth and therefore to reducing the latter; -offer users high-quality infrastructure on acceptable economic terms; -include all modes of transport, taking account of their comparative advantages; -allow the optimal use of existing capacities; -be, insofar as possible, interoperable within modes of transport and encourage intermodality between the different modes of transport; -be, insofar as possible, economically viable; -cover the whole territory of the Member States so as to facilitate access in general, and link island, landlocked and peripheral regions to the central regions and interlink without bottlenecks the major conurbations and regions; -be capable of connection to EFTA states and CEEC and Mediterranean states. �

• 2002/04/18 Vote in committee, 1st reading/single reading
  • A5-0135/2002
• #X016
• 2002/03/25 Council Meeting
  • 2420
• 2001/10/22 Committee referral announced in Parliament, 1st reading/single reading
• #2374
• 2001/10/15 Council Meeting
  • 2374
• 2001/10/01 Legislative proposal published
  • COM(2001)0544 summary

    PURPOSE: To amend EU guidelines on the trans-European transport network (TEN-T). CONTENT: Guidelines spelling out the EU's priorities for the completion of the trans-European transport network are enshrined in Council Decision 1692/96/EC. A five year revision clause obliges the Commission to update, and where necessary, revise these guidelines taking into account economic and technological advances. Recommendations outlined in the White Paper on Transport have been taken on board by the Commission in its proposed amendments to the guidelines. The revision is a first step towards the presentation of a new T-TEN proposal awaited in 2004. Almost half of all goods and passenger traffic is handled by the T-TEN network thus establishing it as a major player in today's European transport establishment. The unprecedented increase in road, rail and air transport however has left the network suffering from overload fatigue. Congestion on the main arteries has become a matter of serious concern. Some 10% of the road network and 20% of the rail network are bottlenecks and one flight in three is delayed by more than 15 minutes. In a further assessment of the existing transport situation the Commission notes that there is a growing imbalance between transport modes. National governments are clearly channelling funds towards the completion of the road network at the expense of rail and air travel. A further gap in the completion of the European transport infrastructure is the linking of national projects to border regions. It would appear that whilst national priorities are progressing at a significant pace the vital linkage required to complete the trans-national nature of the project is failing to be realised. Bearing in mind these short coming the European Commission proposes that the new guidelines should focus less on large scale projects and more on a few clearly defined strategies. Resources should therefore be ploughed into: 1. Developing the network to reduce bottlenecks. 2. Completing the list of 14 priority projects, with a limited number of new projects. (Of the 14 projects established in 1994 only three have been completed). 3. Raising the minimum level of Community support from 10 to 20% for cross-border rail projects crossing natural barriers. Significant amongst the first of these priorities is the shift towards investing in the freight transport sector. This is foreseen through the completion and development of port connections, a high-speed network for passengers, integration of rail and air and the development of an intelligent transport systems. Concerning the second priority and plans for a limited introduction of new priority projects, they are: - the high capacity rail link through the Pyrenees, the global satellite radio-navigation and positioning system (Galileo); the Eastern European high-speed train/combined transport system, the Fehmarn Belt bridge/tunnel between Denmark and Germany, improved navigability on the Danube between Straubing and Vilshofen, interoperability of the high-speed Iberian rail network, adding the mixed freight/high speed line between Montpellier and Nimes, extending the Brenner project fromMunich to Verona to add to the Verona-Naples route and the Bologna-Milan branch. The cost is expected to mount to EUR 66 million and will be secured through national, regional and Community public and private funds. Lastly, concerning financial support for critical cross-border projects, this has been devised in an attempt to boost trans-frontier linkages. Experience has shown that in some cases, especially where cross-border rail projects are concerned the current maximum level of support at 10% is not enough to encourage public or private investment. Hence the decision to increase the threshold to 20%.�

  • DG ['Energy and Transport'],

Documents

• Legislative proposal published: COM(2001)0544
• Debate in Council: 2374
• Debate in Council: 2420
• Committee report tabled for plenary, 1st reading/single reading: A5-0135/2002
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T5-0264/2002
• Debate in Council: 2438
• Modified legislative proposal published: COM(2002)0542
• Debate in Council: X017
• Amended legislative proposal for reconsultation published: COM(2003)0564
• Committee report tabled for plenary, reconsultation: A5-0110/2004
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T5-0173/2004
• Council position published: 05762/1/2004
• Committee recommendation tabled for plenary, 2nd reading: A5-0278/2004
• Decision by Parliament, 2nd reading: T5-0332/2004
• : Decision 2004/884
• : OJ L 201 07.06.2004, p. 0001-0055

History

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