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Issue 5 2020 - Freight Business Journal


///NEWS


>> 3 is crucial. As the passengers


drivers, workers and


only private sector representative to be consulted on EU social matters concerning road transport, we strive for high safety standards, improved working conditions, adequate enforcement and recognition of the key role played by the industry.” “Our partnerships with industry leaders, trade union bodies and


international organisations, including the International Labour Organization and the International Transport Workers Federation, have resulted in successes such as the EU funding of additional safer and secure truck parking areas, which are much needed on European roads. “Efficient enforcement is


another of our priorities. IRU is working on the IRU-ESC charter, a joint initiative with the


European Shippers Council and the European Transport Workers Federation. It aims at improving the treatment of drivers at loading and unloading points and our goal is to have it signed by as many transport operators as possible, so that it becomes a global industry standard. “We are therefore disappointed


to see that, in this case, ITF has put out a one-sided view of a complex matter, based on testimonies from


European Parliament agrees road reform package


The European Parliament agreed the 1st Mobility Package to reform the road transport sector on 9 July, including revised rules to improve driver working conditions and reduced distortion of competition in the sector. MEPs endorsed the three legal


acts that make up the ‘mobility package’ without amendments, as adopted by EU ministers in April 2020, following the political agreement with the Council reached in December 2019. Parliamentary rapporteur


Katerina Konecna said a major problem the reform tackled were “drivers that for weeks or months travel around Europe without


having appropriate time to rest”. The revised rules for posting


of drivers, drivers’ driving times and rest periods and better enforcement of cabotage rules aim to put an end to distortion of competition and provide better conditions for


drivers, allowing


them to spend more time at home. Companies will have to organise their schedules so that drivers in international freight transport can return home every three or four weeks. Mandatory regular weekly rest can no longer be taken in the truck cab and, if this rest period is taken away from home, the company must pay accommodation costs.


Vehicle tachographs will be


used to register border-crossings in order to tackle fraud. To prevent systematic cabotage, there will be a cooling-off period of four days before more cabotage operations can be carried out within the same country with the same vehicle. To fight the use of ‘letterbox


companies’, road haulage businesses will in future have to be able to demonstrate that they are substantially active in the member state in which they are registered. The new rules will require trucks to return to the company’s operational


centre every eight


weeks. Light commercial vehicles of


only 16 drivers. “With road transport, and


drivers in particular, in the spotlight since the beginning of the pandemic, we have raised awareness of driver conditions and treatment as well as giving them the recognition they deserve.” Report: https://bit.ly/3exkhrR The pandemic in road


transport video: https://youtu.be/ apP1CDlGpd0


over 2.5 tonnes will also be subject to EU rules for transport operators, including fitting with tachographs. The adopted rules will enter into


force aſter they are published in the EU’s Official Journal in the coming weeks. The rules on posting will apply 18 months aſter the entry into force of the legal act. The rules on rest times, including the return of drivers, will apply 20 days aſter publication of the act. Rules on return of trucks and other changes to market access rules will apply 18 months aſter the entry into force of the act on market access. In response, European


Transport Commissioner Adina-Ioana Vălean said that while she welcomed the social improvements included in the Mobility Package, the requirement to return the vehicle to the Member State of establishment every


News Roundup


Scottish haulier Currie European Transport has acquired fellow Kent-based operator Laser Transport International for an undisclosed sum, with the help of a £9 million refinancing deal with Bibby Financial Services. It follows Currie’s acquisition of Dundee- based PS Ridgeway in February 2019. The Scottish operator trades as Currie Solutions and has six other companies in Scotland, England, the Netherlands and France.


Eurotunnel operator Getlink has appointed Yann Leriche as its new chief executive, following the decision taken by the board of directors on 30 January. Jacques Gounon will remain chairman. Leriche was previously chief executive of urban transport operator Transdev North America. Getlink has also appointed Vincent Ducros as group environment director. He has been project manager at Suez Recycling and Recovery France since 2018.


Eurotunnel’s Le Shuttle Freight service moved 108,000 trucks in June, down 11% on the same month in 2019. For the six months January to June 2020, carryings were 665,350, down 18% on the same period last year. However, daily freight traffic reached a high for the period since 19 March, with 4,885 trucks transported on 24 June. Passenger traffic for the first six months of 2020 was 52% below last year.


eight weeks and the restrictions imposed on combined transport operations were not in line with the European Green Deal’s ambitions and the European Council aim for a climate-neutral EU by 2050. The obligation to return


trucks may lead to unnecessary emissions and congestion, while the restrictions on combined transport could diminish its effectiveness to support


multimodal freight operations. She said: “We are currently


assessing the expected impact of these two aspects on the climate, the environment, and the functioning of the Single Market, and we are gathering all the necessary information. I encourage the road transport sector and the national authorities to support this work by providing relevant data for the assessment.”


Road & Rail


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