CALL FOR EVIDENCE ON WEIGHTS & DIMENSIONS DIRECTIVE
The European Commission published today a call for evidence for the evaluation of the Directive on weights and dimensions. This Directive sets standards for the maximum weights and dimensions of heavy-duty vehicles used in national and international transport. As announced in the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, the revision of the Directive would help to make road transport more sustainable by making available sustainable alternatives and the right incentives to drive the transition.
The Commission considers that the revision of the Directive should address two main problems: First, the fragmentation of the market for the use of oversized and overweighed vehicles, due to the patchwork of national and bilateral/multilateral rules on maximum weights and dimensions. This leads to an infective and inconsistent enforcement of cross-border transport rules for HDVs. The current EU rules also hamper the full potential for using longer combinations of standard vehicles (the ‘European Modular System’) or for intermodal transport. Second, there is an insufficient uptake of alternatively fuelled and zero-emission vehicles, usually heavier than conventional trucks, for which the current Directive does not offer enough incentives, especially for long-distance transport.
The call for evidence is open for feedback until 18 February. The Commission plans to launch a 12-week public consultation in Q1 2022 along with targeted stakeholder consultations. The adoption of a Commission proposal is expected for Q1 2023.