Alps heavy vehicle controls rapped

Date: 20/12/01

TRANSPORT officials fear that a Commission proposal allowing Austria to continue restricting heavy vehicles in the Alps could present the Union's executive with a legal minefield.

EU leaders at the Laeken summit called on the Commission to make a rapid decision on Austria's "eco-points" system on limiting Alpine traffic.

Belgium's EU presidency was eager that Vienna would not carry out a threat to block closure of the transport chapter for several countries in the enlargement talks. It was expected that today's (20 December) Commission meeting would propose an extension of the system - due to expire in early January 2003 - for another few years.

But officials said that this would be legally difficult. To continue with "eco-points", Austria had to be granted an exemption from free movement of goods regulations in a protocol attached to its own treaty on joining the Union.

Insiders believe an extension could only be granted by altering that protocol and not as a result of a simple Commission proposal.

"This is a very messy file," said one expert. "Nobody seems to have considered any of the consequences of extending the eco-points at Laeken. The issue took up one line in the

[summit's] conclusions but it would take a few books of documentation if you want to put the extension into practice."

Transport officials fear that a Commission proposal allowing Austria to continue restricting heavy vehicles in the Alps could present the Union's executive with a legal minefield.