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Trans-European transport network: streamlining measures for advancing its realisation

In “A European Green Deal”

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The trans-European transport network (TEN-T) is a European Commission policy seeking to develop a European-wide network of roads, railway lines, inland waterways, shipping routes, ports, airports and rail-road terminals. It consists of two planning layers, the comprehensive network (covers all European regions, should be finished by 2050) and the core network (most important connections, should be finished by 2030). While implementation of the TEN-T progressed, among the biggest challenges identified were complex administrative procedures linked to cross-border permit-granting procedures and regulatory uncertainty, leading to delays and increased costs.  

With the present regulation, the Commission wanted to speed up the completion of the TEN-T, reduce delays encountered in infrastructure projects, facilitate the involvement of private investors and clarify rules for public consultations. Announced in the Commission 2018 work programme, the proposal came within the third ‘Europe on the Move’ mobility package.

TEN-T projects of common interest should get preferential treatment (fast-track procedures). To integrate the various permit-granting processes, the authorisation of TEN-T projects is to be handled only by one authority, which would act as a single entry point (one-stop shop) for project promoters and investors and deliver one comprehensive decision, within defined time limits (a two-stage process with a maximum timeframe of three years). To better coordinate permit-granting procedures across borders, the role of the existing European Coordinators had to be strengthened. Public procurement in cross-border projects of common interest has to follow only one legal framework, unless the governments involved agree otherwise. The regulation should not apply to administrative processes already started before it enters in force.

The European Parliament has supported the timely TEN-T completion on many occasions.

In the Parliament, the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) has prepared a report, while the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) and  the Committee on Regional Development (REGI) have prepared an opinion.

The TRAN rapporteur Dominique Riquet (ALDE, France) put forward his draft report on 17 September 2018. Welcoming the clear deadlines proposed for each stage of the permit granting procedure, he would shorten them even more (reducing the whole procedure to less than three years). Further changes would concern the possibility, for a Member State, to delegate the competence (of a single competent authority) to a more appropriate level, as long as the principle of 'single point of contact' is observed. The rapporteur introduced a new provision that would make the compliance with the deadlines one of the criteria for selecting projects seeking financing from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). The TRAN Committee adopted its report on 10 January 2019.

In the Council, discussions at the Transport Working Party focused on the impact on local and regional authorities in terms of financing and workload, on the legal form chosen (a regulation) and on the proposal's compatibility with the principle of subsidiarity. The Presidency proposed a compromise, allowing existing authorities at the appropriate administrative level to become a single competent authority. The Council published a progress report on 16 November 2018. However, the Transport Council meeting on 3 December 2018 confirmed that a number of aspects of the proposal still need to be addressed before an agreement becomes possible.

Given that the interinstitutional negotiations could not start, the TRAN report was adopted in plenary on 13 February 2019, closing the first reading in Parliament.

On 2 December 2019, the Council adopted a general approach, changing the legal nature of the proposal from a regulation to a directive, to give Member States more flexibility. The draft directive would cover projects that are part of pre-identified cross-border links and missing links of the TEN-T core network. Projects related only to telematics or other new technologies will be excluded from the scope. Member States will designate an authority to act as the main point of contact for the project promoter. For the entire permit-granting process, a maximum time limit of four years will apply, extensions will be possible in duly justified cases.  In an addendum, Germany specified that the procedural acceleration is without prejudice to the substantive criteria and that the four-year time limit cannot justify any limitations to the scope nor quality of environmental assessments.

On 8 June 2020, Parliament and Council agreed on a final compromise text. It lists several minor adaptations and specifies that the directive will cover other projects on the core network corridors, whose total cost exceeds EUR 300 million.On 14 July 2020, TRAN MEPs approved the provisional agreement by 47 votes to one, with one abstention. However, the text could not be adopted before the adoption of the CEF 2021-2027 programme (see a separate wagon), as the annexes are interlinked.

Following the adoption of the CEF, the Council adopted the final text of 'smart TEN-T' directive on 14 June 2021.

The EP TRAN Committee approved the text in second reading on 28 June 2021.

The EP adopted the final text in second reading on 6 July 2021, the final act was signed the following day and published in the EU Official Journal on 20 July 2021.

Member States have to comply as of 10 August 2023.

References:

Further reading:

Author: Monika Kiss, Members' Research Service, legislative-train@europarl.europa.eu

As of 20/10/2023.