R&SD Executive Group Item 6.3
EU Transport Policy reviews
Purpose
1. This report summarises the recent developments and COSLA lobbying activities in EU
Transport dossiers and summarises forthcoming reviews of the EU Transport Policy. For
that purpose it proposes a number of key lobbying principles that will guide COSLA
involvement at EU level over the coming months.
Recommendations
2. Members of the Executive Group are invited to:
i.
ii.
iii.
Note the recent COSLA lobbying activities in Brussels on transport dossiers
Note the forthcoming reviews of EU Transport Policy
Discuss and approve with any amendments the key COSLA lobbying principles on
these dossiers for the new terms of the European Parliament and the European
Commission.
Review of the Trans European Networks of Transport
3. On 4 February the European Commission tabled the long awaited review of the TransEuropean Transport Networks, that is a collection of 30 transport links across Europe that
benefit from a specific priority support from the EU Budget - although the budget is
woefully insufficient at only €8bn. The Green Paper amounts to a grand review of the
network in order to update it and to make it relevant for an enlarged EU of 27 Member
States.
4. It is worth pointing out that the current TEN-T priority projects 13, 14, 21 and 26 anticipate
a number of improved rail, motorway and seaborne links of several parts of Scotland with
continental Europe and Ireland. The Green Paper formulates a number of new, but not
yet very well defined concepts, such as “core networks”, “green corridors” or a new
bottom up "corridor coordination approach".
5. These types of approaches could potentially disguise a reduction in investment in
peripheral areas such as Scotland and not adequately reflect the Territorial Cohesion
objective as one of the key criteria to review the TEN-T network. COSLA has therefore
been advising the Scottish MEPs sitting at the Transport Committee on possible
safeguards to ensure that TEN-T Projects are compatible with local and regional transport
plans, local access to the TEN-T network is ensured, local authorities are involvement in
the implementation of the TEN-T Guidelines and that the TEN-T network is developed in a
consistent way with the principle of Territorial Cohesion covering the whole of EU territory.
6. MEPs endorsed those views on 22 April. In terms of next steps the Commission, and
following an initial consultation to which COSLA briefed our member Councils and the
European consortia the European Commission will present the new TEN-T proposal over
the coming months.
7. Clearly, the outcome of this review will very much related to the wider EU Transport
discussion described below. To inform the forthcoming steps a number of key lobbying
points are outlined for members approval at the end of this paper.
EU Urban Mobility Action Plan
8. Members will recall this Executive Group approved a COSLA position in early 2008
whereby COSLA regarded the need on EU action on urban mobility only where it could
provide real added value and that the role of the EU should not be mandatory
9. As described at the last Executive Group meeting the European Parliament had been
trying to revive this debate. The Commission was not able to table an Urban Mobility
Action Plan as they originally intended to due to the concerns raised by councils over any
strong EU involvement in this area, which is clearly a local competence.
10. To prevent EU interference at a local level COSLA has been advising the Scottish MEPs
sitting at the Transport Committees to introduce provisions in the Parliament that would
tone down EU involvement. The final text as approved on 22 April is much more moderate
in its demands than previous MEP positions on this matter. However we regret that the
agreement of the principle that wherever urban transport structures are already in place
no EU support will be provided. Although it is clear that the Urban Mobility debate will be
temporarily merged into the wider review of EU Transport Policy, we will continue
pressing for ensuring that local subsidiarity is respected by the EU.
11. We would therefore request that members endorse the urban mobility lobbying principles
as outlined in the final section of this paper.
EU Transport White Paper Review:
12. The first major review of the ground-breaking 2001 EU White Paper on Transport is
expected to have been launched on 3rd June. The stated purpose of the initiative is to
stimulate a wide-ranging debate on transport scenarios with a 20- to 40 - year time
horizon. It is also to develop tools and provide technical support for an overall sustainable
transport approach, which will allow identifying problems and opportunities that may
require action from now to 2050.
13. While we are aware that the European Commission is still looking into the details of this
proposal we are already holding exchanges on this matter with like-minded associations
of Local Authorities from other countries as well as within our EU umbrella organisation
the CEMR. COSLA has been invited to provide an officer-level presentation on the above
work on EU transport issues at CEMR Transport Working Group next 16 June
14. In preparation for the new White Paper, members are asked to endorse the key principles
that are outlined below.
COSLA key messages on EU Transport Policy for the next EU term:
Taking stock of existing COSLA political positions as well as its lobbying work at EU level on
EU Transport dossier, in preparation for the forthcoming term of the new European
Commission and European Parliament, members are asked to endorse, and amend where
appropriate, the following lobbying messages that will inform COSLA lobbying work in the
coming years:
a. The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) supports EU initiatives on
transport matters provided it fully respect the principle of conferral – whereby the EU
should only intervene on matters that the EU Treaties have explicitly allowed it to – and
fully respect of the principle of subsidiarity and proportionality – whereby the respect of
local competences and local freedom to organise and provide local transport services is
fully observed.
b. COSLA also believes that EU involvement should not take place only where the EU has
some legal competences on transport, but also only when its actions can provide real EU
added value;
c. COSLA stresses that wherever local transport frameworks and solutions are already well
developed, added value from any forthcoming European urban mobility proposal would
be better achieved by supporting the development of existing structures. COSLA would
not support any EU measure that would introduce mandatory local transport rules
(planning, green zones, organisation of transport, etc);
d. While transport solutions should start at a local level, especially as regards to urban
mobility, COSLA welcomes EU support for local initiatives by the organisation of the
exchange of best practice. Likewise COSLA would support the continuation and further
development of EU financial support for local innovative transport actions that otherwise
could not be financed locally or nationally;
e. COSLA encourages a holistic approach is needed whereby freight movement should be
considered as well as passenger traffic. Likewise, economic development together with
sustainable development provisions, including emissions and climate change, should be
woven into any action plan to ensure outcomes on the ground are complementary to
current local priorities;
f.
COSLA welcomes the development of Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) and
technologies and its implementation at the local level. COSLA supports the EU action to
facilitate this, provided it is technology neutral and it is limited to ensure that systems are
interoperable across the EU, avoiding gaps and overlapping of systems. We also support
the EU facilitation of the expansion of ITS across the EU, including financial support but
only if local authorities retain the ability to define the content, timing and ambition of ITS
deployment in their area;
g. We would stress the need that, in line with the principle of Territorial Cohesion, all regions
of the EU, considered at least on a NUTS II1 basis, are able to be linked with the Trans
European Transport Network;
h. Therefore we would demand that access to the TEN-T network via secondary links is
ensured both at national and EU planning and financing stages of TEN-T deployment;
i.
COSLA would like to emphasize the need that consistency is ensured between the EU
transport initiatives TEN-T projects and the local and regional transport plans;
j.
COSLA recognises the need for Member States, Devolved Administrations and local
authorities to work in partnership in deciding, planning and financing transport
infrastructure;
k. Given the geographic situation of Scotland, we would particularly encourage the
development within the TEN-T framework of ‘motorways of the sea’ essentially sea links
for freight as a sustainable, energy efficient way of improving connectivity, particularly in
the North Sea and Baltic Regions.
l.
1
We believe that should a North Sea Strategy be developed over the coming years, the
development of transport links across this area should be fully integrated in it.
NUTS stands for Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics and level two refers in Scotland to the four
statistical grouping of the 32 local authorities: Highlands and Islands, South of Scotland, West of Scotland
and East of Scotland.
m. COSLA would like to stress the need for proper coordination and cross-referencing of the
ongoing and forthcoming EU transport strategies and initiatives coming from within the
Commission Transport Directorate General but also between it and other Directorates
such as Regional Policy and Maritime Affairs
n. Towards the next EU Budget Review, COSLA would express its hopes that EU transport
financing is simplified and made fully consistent with national funding and that financial
allocations correspond to the stated ambitions, and vice versa.
Serafin Pazos-Vidal
COSLA Brussels Office
serafin@cosla.gov.uk
June 2009