Dear IFRTT Forum subscriber,
indeed a refreshing summer here in Falsterbo, on the south-western tip of
and the medieval Baltic centre of herring fishing and salting. But history does not
make it a haven free from 3G broadband internet.
It is vacation time in
for a meeting on what is sometimes called “a general safety regulation”, a package
including EU references to UN-ECE regulations, tyre characteristics and car tyre
pressure monitoring and vehicle stability control, automatic emergency braking
and lane change warning. In my view too much for one legislative effort and
a high risk of sloppy legislation. Anyhow flying from and back to
saves me some flying time.
land” during the days of the fat herrings.
The Brussels EU administration is very busy, next year being election year for the
European Parliament with probable changes of the European Commission as well:
CO2 limits for passenger cars, Euro VI emission for commercial vehicles, a
methodology paper on “internalisation of external costs”, a proposed amendment
of the road charging directive for vehicles above 12 tonnes.
This so called “Eurovignette” was initially designed to make cross-border road freight
easy, pay for your road wear, get a sticker and go. And European road freight has
been successful, to the degree that the railroads are complaining bitterly. They still
have to sort out the problems with three track widths, seven signals systems, at least
three tunnel standards and safety regulations more or less designed to keep out non-
domestic train operators. This second amendment of the Eurovignette framework is
focussing on hampering road freight and to give the finance ministers added revenues.
So it goes.
On vehicle weights and dimensions, the UK TRL-Herriot Watt study was made public
a few weeks ago and a final stakeholder meeting on the study of the 96/53/EU Directive
was held early July, the report is expected in a few weeks. Both studies seem to have
neglected the importance of standardised loading unit dimensions. History repeats itself,
the great rationalist Descartes, Kartesius, had his head chopped off because the coffin
was too short when dead in
Drive safely,
Anders Lundström, IFRTT president