The European Commission proposed new measures on Tuesday. to make freight transport more efficient and sustainable through improved infrastructure management rail, offering more incentives for low-level trucks emissions and improving information on emissions of greenhouse gases produced by the transport of goods.

Recalling that the current rules on capacity management Railways are fixed annually, at national level, and this is It is to the detriment of cross-border traffic, which represents approximately 50 % of rail freight, the Commission has explained that its proposal for a regulation on use of railway infrastructure in the European railway area Unico is based on the timetable rescheduling project promoted by the same operators in the sector with the aim of better respond to the different needs of the railway sector.

With regard to the road haulage sector, the proposal revises The rules of the Vehicle Weights and Dimensions Directive heavy, which fixes its length, width and height maximum, in order to allow greater load for vehicles that use zero-emission technologies, which tend to increase the weight of a vehicle. Once the technology will be developed and zero-emission propulsion systems will be become lighter, also thanks to the use of devices and aerodynamic cabins - the Commission has highlighted - the trucks less pollutants will benefit from an additional payload compared to conventional vehicles.

Finally, the European Commission has proposed an approach common methodology to enable companies to calculate their greenhouse gas emissions where they decide to publish such emissions information or are required to share it for contractual reasons. The proposed methodology (CountEmissions EU) is based on the standard Recently adopted ISO/CEN for quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions from operation of passenger and transport chains goods. The Commission explained that reliable data on Door-to-door emissions will put operators in able to carry out assessments on their services and will allow consumers to make informed choices about transport options and delivery.

CLECAT, the European freight forwarders' association, welcomed welcomes the publication of the new package and, in particular, the proposal for a regulation CountEmissions EU: "we appreciate - specified Nicolette van der Jagt, director general of the CLECAT - the Commission's proposal to use the methodology established by the ISO 14083 standard, the development of which was actively supported by CLECAT, as freight forwarders use international transport operations, including involving more than one mode of transport. While the regulation does not oblige companies to declare their greenhouse gas emissions from transport, those that decide to do so they will have to adhere to the rules of CountEmissions. That is in line with the requirements of CLECAT, as allow for gradual market adoption, including SMEs'.