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On 15 December CLECAT joined an online workshop organised by the Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE) of the European Commission on the revision of the Directive 96/53/EC on Weights and Dimensions. The workshop was organised to support the consortium working on the study aimed at analysing impacts of the revision which runs until March 2023, better understand the impacts of the revision of the W&D Directive.  It was an opportunity for stakeholders to express their views on the preliminary evaluation presented by DG MOVE regarding the Directive and the possible measures to tackle them. The European Commission referred to low uptake of ZE HDV and energy saving technologies and schemes, a fragmentation of the market for oversized and overweight freight transport and an ineffective and inconsistent enforcement of cross-border transport rules for HDVs.

The Commission than presented possible decarbonisation policy measures such as:  1) allowing for extra length, weight, height to accommodate ZE technologies and containerised transport, 2)  to allow intra-EU transport of 44 tonnes and EMS at least in core and comprehensive TEN-T Network conditioned to be Zero Emission Vehicles or part of an intermodal transport operation, or 3) to allow for 44 tonnes and EMS unconditional to be part of ZE or intermodal transport. 

Industry stakeholders were given the opportunity to express their views and comments. It was highlighted the importance to harmonise the legal framework in the EU but without undermining the specific needs and condition of different Member States. An example was given by SIFA (Sweden) who noted that it is important to permit Member States to bilaterally agree on larger and/or heavier trucks nationally and cross-border. Such larger and heavier truck should also not be bound by any Zero Emission or similar requirement, as the fact that they are larger and heavier contributes to sustainability.

CLECAT has called for a review of the Directive that

• Raises the EU-wide maximum weight and length threshold of HDV to at least 44 tonnes while continuing to allow countries to go beyond these minimum criteria where they seek to do so;
• Allows EMS throughout the EU27 at least along the TEN-T core and comprehensive network and
• Ensures coherence with other EU initiatives to decarbonise road transport such as the revision of the CO2 standards for heavy-duty vehicles.

CLECAT’s position paper is available here.