On the 2nd of June 2022, Ministers in the TTE Council (Transport) exchanged views on the draft Regulation proposed by the European Commission on the further development of the trans-European transport network (TEN-T), based on a progress report.
They agreed that the policy on the development of the trans-European transport network is a key instrument of the Union’s transport policy. For Member States, the revised Regulation must encourage sustainable and more efficient transport of people and goods while also strengthening the EU’s economic, social and territorial cohesion by creating a reliable, high-quality transport system free of physical interruptions, missing links and bottlenecks.
Ministers also requested that more attention be paid to geographical and other types of specificities of national contexts, while underlining that the technical requirements as well as the deadlines proposed make it unlikely that they can be reached, especially given the current financial and geopolitical circumstances.
There was an issue raised by the Danish delegation during the Transport Council meeting. The delegation briefed the Council that there is a worrying increasing trend of driver attestations for third-country drivers. According to Denmark, it is leading to downward pressure on working and social conditions. The European Commission, however, argued that the problem is structural and that there are enough legislative tools to ensure that there is no discrimination between EU and non-EU drivers.
For the Council conclusions, please see here.