Member States and Commission split over road tolls

The Commission's proposal for a revision of the 'Eurovignette' directive recommends that revenues raised from road tolls be spent on improving transport infrastructure. It also defines which factors Member States should take into account in setting road tolls for lorries (if they wish to introduce such tolls).

During the Council meeting on 9 March 2004, transport ministers expressed diverging views on the use of revenues generated from road tolls. The United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and France would prefer to use the proceeds from road tolls as government fiscal revenue to be allocated to any sector. However, the Commission together with some Member States refuses this approach, arguing that the charging of road use is not being put in place to generate additional state revenues but to reduce congestion and negative environmental impacts. After a day of talks, and despite a compromise proposal put on the table by the Irish Presidency, the Council ended without an agreement on a common approach.

Negotiations will continue in the Council's working group to find a compromise on this issue for the next Transport Council in June. The Parliament will vote in plenary on the road charging directive mid-April. In its draft report, Parliament's rapporteur Luigi Cocilovo backs the Commission's view and notes that "the revenue from fees must be used for maintenance of the road infrastructure and for the benefit of the transport sector".