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The targeted revision of the Eurovignette Directive was discussed at the TRAN Committee meeting this week. The rapporteur, Matteo Ricci (S&D, Italy), presented a draft report that focuses on outstanding implementation challenges. A key issue concerns the proposed differentiation of tolls based on the environmental performance of trailers. Ricci acknowledged that significant technical questions remain unresolved, particularly regarding the real-time identification of trailers in operation. As a result, he proposes postponing the introduction of such differentiation and instead calls on the European Commission to reassess its feasibility two years after the directive’s entry into force.

Several MEPs including Markus Ferber (EPP), Jan-Christoph Oetjen (Renew), and Lena Schilling (Greens), emphasised that including trailers was part of the original ambition of the revision and could support the uptake of more sustainable, but also more costly, equipment.  The Council has already moved in a different direction, excluding trailers from the scope of the revision, highlighting the likelihood of interinstitutional tensions in the next phase.

The possible introduction of reduced toll charges for trucks equipped with range extender technologies was supported by MEP Ferber, Oetjen and Carlo Fidanza (ECR). This technology aims to provide incentives for transitional technologies that can reduce emissions without relying fully on zero-emission solutions. The European Commission indicated it would not oppose such an approach, although the rapporteur has so far not taken a position, and the Greens have rejected it as being outside the scope of the revision. The deadline for amendments is set for 24 March.

CLECAT, together with the European Express Association (EEA), has in a joint letter to the European Parliament called for a more comprehensive approach to decarbonisation within the Eurovignette framework, stressing that additional incentives are needed for low-emission and transitional solutions. CLECAT and EEA advocate for a more proportionate and science-based approach to Emission Class 4, arguing that the current flat-rate reduction does not adequately reflect the CO₂ savings of technologies such as biofuels, biogases, and range extenders. They call for a system that links toll reductions more directly to verified emission reductions, thereby strengthening the business case for investments in low-carbon solutions in the short to medium term.