A3-0239/94

Resolution on transport policy in the Maas-Rhine Euregio

The European Parliament,

-having regard to the motion for a resolution by Mrs Dinguirard and others on transport policy shortcomings in the Maas-Rhine Euregio (B3-1179/93),

-having regard to its resolution of 18 September 1992 on regional aspects of transport policy,

-having regard to its resolution of 18 January 1994 on the future development of the common transport policy,

-having regard to Rule 45 of the Rules of Procedure,

-having regard to the report of the Committee on Transport and Tourism (A3-0239/94),

A.whereas the preamble to the EC Treaty (Article 2) states that the Community shall have as its task 'to promote ... a high level of employment ..., the raising of the standard of living and quality of life ...', and that this means inter alia having better opportunities to move from one Member State to another in order to promote free movement of workers within the Community,

B.whereas on 1 July 1987 the Single European Act entered into force, increasing the application of Community transport policy to the transport sector,

C.whereas the insertion of an additional title (Part three, Title XII) in the EC Treaty indicates the importance of trans-European networks and whereas in particular Articles 129b and 129c are concerned with the objectives and instruments of Community action and the policy pursued by the Commission with regard to the creation and development of these networks,

D.whereas the European Commission's 1992 White Paper particularly mentions the need to link the Member States' national infrastructures, a subject on which the Brussels European Council worked out an initial position,

E.whereas the Edinburgh and Copenhagen European Councils laid the financial basis for plans concerning trans-European networks,

F.whereas existing bus and train services in border areas generally function inadequately and there are often problems with fares and timetables and moreover the integration of the railway systems in the three countries of the Maas-Rhine Euregio is still seriously hampered by differing voltage systems,

G.whereas the Commission is seeking to improve cross-border exchanges of information about road transport by means of pilot projects and is thereby promoting safety,

1.Confirms that, with regard to competition policy, the Community must face up to the challenges, taking due account of regional imbalances;

2.Is convinced that the completion of the internal market ought inter alia to promote the economic cohesion of the EC, and that distortions of competition should be avoided in this process;

3.Deplores the fact that there has still not been any action to improve cross-border rail, road, water or public transport in the Maas-Rhine Euregio;

4.Points out that the Community should be able not only to coordinate but also to set developments in train and that it should therefore be capable of ensuring that infrastructure does not differ too much from one Member State to another;

5.Recommends that measures be taken to establish better coordination among administrators in the region in cooperation with the Commission so that employment can also be promoted by improving cross-border transport;

6.Observes that measures are needed to alleviate transport problems in the Maas-Rhine Euregio and that these fall within the sphere of competence of the Member States or of the entities of which they consist, or within that of the European Community, in accordance with the subsidiarity principle, and therefore urges that the partners of the Euregio and of the Commission cooperate actively;

7.Recommends that the current bottleneck on the E-25 at Maastricht be cleared, thereby reducing pollution, relieving congestion and benefiting the economic development of the region, while at the same time encouraging the establishment of businesses and guaranteeing a rapid and reliable traffic flow, which will influence a far larger area than the Maas-Rhine Euregio;

8.Takes the view that, in order to reduce the share of car traffic in total traffic growth and spare the environment, alternative types of transport, such as rail, inland shipping and combined transport, should be encouraged, public transport should be improved and members of the public should cycle more; in order to promote this, industry, local authorities, tourist organizations and national authorities should work together;

9.Calls on the Commission to carry out studies of ways of improving cross-border transport in the Maas-Rhine Euregio and to allocate funds to enable these improvements to be implemented, and urges that express coaches, subsidized by INTERREG, compensate for the lack of direct cross-border rail links;

10.Recommends that pollution by cars be reduced in the principal towns of the Maas-Rhine Euregio and that, in order to combat traffic congestion, car parks be provided outside the centres and minibuses be used to transport tourists and other visitors free of charge to town centres, taking as an example the arrangements which already exist in Aachen;

11.Is convinced that public transport should be adjusted and that rail, bus and air schedules should link up so that it becomes possible to travel from one Member State to another without difficulty, and wishes bus and train fares and services to be coordinated intermodally and across borders; for example, a single fare, based solely on the distance travelled, could be introduced, while buses with coordinated timetables on either side of a border should be replaced with a single through bus service;

12.Wishes more and more freight to be moved by train and inland waterway, as this will slow down the increase in pollution, and will cost less and be safer;

13.Stresses the importance of upgrading the Heerlen-Aachen railway line and establishing a rail link between Neerpelt and Weert, which would improve access to Belgian Limburg; notes that an increase in road transport (by car or bus) in this region is unacceptable because of the pollution of the environment, nuisance, danger of accidents and waste of energy, and that studies have shown that there would be enough travellers provided that the services were good; the costs of such a link could be shared between the national authorities, the EC, Belgian Railways (NMBS) and Netherlands Railways (NS);

14.Observes that a European high-speed rail network could be an environmentally benign alternative to rising car and air traffic, but that this must not damage the interchange function of secondary railway stations and lines (for example Verviers and Düren);

15.Considers that Flanders should be integrated into a modern European inland waterways network, and therefore recommends the modernization of the inland waterway link with the Netherlands via North Limburg, supported in part by financial contributions from the European Union;

16.Recommends taking measures to reduce congestion and delays at Ternaaien locks, an important link in the European waterway network, so that transportation of freight, which is certain to increase in the future, can be provided more rapidly, which will benefit consignors and consignees and have an impact on costs and employment in the region, and stresses that to consignors the reliability of the link is even more important than speed;

17.Calls in this connection for account to be taken of the opportunities provided by the alterations to the Maas, as a result of which large Rhine vessels will gain access to Liège and also Namur via the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp;

18.Observes that once the necessary work has been completed on the locks complex and the Maas, the Maas route will enjoy advantages over the Albert Canal in view of the charges payable for using the latter and its closure to shipping on Sundays, and that these charges and Sunday closing should therefore be abolished;

19.Draws attention to the fact that the provision of subsidies from INTERREG to two airports less than 50 km apart within the same region, where moreover different standards for aircraft noise apply, is distorting competition and is therefore directly contrary to EC policy;

20.Notes that tourism is an important industry in the Maas-Rhine Euregio which provides employment for many people and further increases car traffic, and therefore recommends that a traffic and transport policy be developed in which access to centres of tourism and recreation should be an important element; calls for attention to be devoted to a cross-border network of cycle paths, which - especially in Belgian Limburg - is insufficiently developed;

21.Observes that the lack of information about transport services is a serious obstacle for many people wishing to travel from one Member State to another, and therefore urges that an information system be established which will enable clear information, which meets the needs of the people concerned, to be obtained easily and rapidly;

22.Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission and Council.