Newsletters

On 14 September, the European Court of Justice handed down its judgment in Case C‑246/22, on the interpretation of Directive 92/106/EEC (Combined Transport Directive) and Regulation (EC) 1072/2009 (common rules for international road haulage market). The request has been made in proceedings between a Romanian road haulage company, TIM-Trans Impex SRL, and the German Federal Office for the Carriage of Goods concerning the imposition of an administrative fine for infringement of provisions relating to cabotage operations.

The Federal Office imposed an €8,625 administrative fine on the transport company for carrying out at least 57 transport operations involving empty containers which did not come within the privileged treatment afforded to combined transport, thereby constituting cabotage operations. TIM-Trans Impex SRL brought an action against that decision before the Local Court of Cologne, which asked the ECJ whether Article 1 of Directive 92/106 must be interpreted as meaning that the road transport of empty containers between a container terminal and a point where the goods are loaded or unloaded falls within the concept of “combined transport”, such that it benefits from exemption to cabotage rules.

According to the Court, despite it is apparent from the wording of Article 1 of Directive 92/106 that the combined transport operations referred to in that article are transport of goods operations, that does not rule out the possibility that some of those operations take place with the empty container, provided that the unladen journey is carried out in immediate connection with the transport of goods. Therefore, the Court rules that Article 1 of the Combined Transport Directive must be interpreted as meaning that the road transport of empty containers between a container terminal and a point where the goods are loaded or unloaded falls within the concept of ‘combined transport’, which in return is exempt from cabotage rules.

CLECAT welcomes the ECJ ruling, providing a clear interpretation of the definition of combined transport which includes the transport of empty containers. This would limit the diverging interpretations between Member States which create situations of legal uncertainty for business, risks of breaches of law and unwarranted penalties. CLECAT considers that cabotage exemption from transport operations acts as a non-financial incentive for the utilisation of multimodal transport. Imposing such restrictions would lead to increased emissions, a mid- to long-term negative impact on rail and intermodal freight and ultimately disincentivises companies from investing in combined transport operations.