Presentation of ECA Special Report on EU transport infrastructures
On 7 December 2020, Ms Annemie Turtelboom presented the ECA Special Report no 10/2020 (Discharge 2019) "EU transport infrastructures: more speed needed in megaproject implementation to deliver network effects on time" to the CONT Committee. The Court concluded that key cross-border transport megaprojects in the EU are progressing more slowly than expected.
According to the Court, six of the eight multibillion infrastructures audited and their access lines are unlikely to be operating at full capacity by 2030, as initially planned in 2013.
The auditors found that the delays in the construction and putting into operation of these megaprojects put at risk the effective functioning of five out of nine TEN-T corridors. There were examples of poor planning and inefficient implementation. While the Commission's oversight of the timely completion of the network has weaknesses and is distant, the Commission has a tool that can be built upon to improve performance.
To improve the sound financial management of these multi-billion euro investments, the Court made a number of recommendations to support the long term planning, management and supervision of these multi-billion infrastructure investments.