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Austria fails to cut HGV traffic
Page 12
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E A bid by the Austrian government to ration the amount of international haulage traffic on its roads has been quashed by the European Commission.
The Austrians claimed that the number of foreign trucks crossing its borders last year exceeded levels agreed when it originally joined the European Union.
But the EC says analysis of the statistics used by the Austrians shows them to be unreliable.
"It became clear that more than 9% of transits declared might not have taken place at all.
This includes, for example, lorries transported by train after they entered Austria or lorries which have made a bilateral journey, leaving Austria at the same frontier post where they entered or journeys for which there are no exit statistics."
International haulage in Austria is governed by an ecopoints system and is restricted to 108% of the total number of trips made in 1991.
Guy Willis, spokesman for the International Road Transport Union, says the system is nonsensical because it contradicts the EU principal of allowing the free movement of goods between member states.
He says a replacement system, which could restrict rationing to older, less environmentally friendly vehicles, is due to be introduced next year.