Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-01-17-Speech-3-304"
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"en.20010117.10.3-304"2
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".
Mr President, Commissioner, I will refrain from defining intermodality, adopting the definition which the Commission itself has used in the past instead. However, the operations supporting intermodality are becoming ever more urgent for a number of reasons: the need to rationalise traffic and optimise transportation times, and economic and environmental requirements, for intermodality is a key element in sustainable mobility.
The objective is to establish an information system providing for real-time transport management, as well as the use of electronic transactions in transport, by means of the development of real-time electronic information and transaction systems, the harmonisation of transport message, procedure and document standards
using Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) systems, a uniform liability regime
designed to offer the end user a clear set of transparent conditions and procedures with regard to liability for cargos which may be damaged or lost during transportation, the development of information society technologies
of benefit to intermodal transport, through the creation of an open structure which makes it possible to follow the movement of goods along the entire intermodal chain, and paperless transport, involving the harmonisation of document regulations and the creation of a single electronic window.
The Commission has also planned a series of horizontal measures, using research and technological development projects to introduce innovation aimed at utilising new technologies to develop innovative services and increase productivity. Clearly, a discussion on intermodality requires, at the same time, a sharp cultural change in the culture of enterprise.
The globalisation and liberalisation of the markets are already producing a substantial increase in the demand for the transportation of goods and commodities. The high growth rates are inducing competition which will increasingly affect the volumes transported and, therefore, mergers and other forms of association between operators in the sector will be absolutely inevitable.
Finally, I would like to thank the Members who contributed actively to the preparation of a resolution acceptable to the majority of the committee.
I should also like to inform you that, as far as the few amendments tabled are concerned, I essentially endorse all of them, with the exception of Amendment No 3, with regard to which I am somewhat perplexed by the reference to State aid.
As matters stand, intermodality poses a series of drawbacks stemming from the lack of integration between the various modes of transport, together with deficiencies peculiar to some of these modes. The development of intermodality hinges primarily upon the level of efficiency provided by the rail services on offer, which unfortunately, in many Member States, rate poorly in terms of quality, efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
Moreover, as the Commission has pointed out on several occasions, the development of infrastructure continues to focus on unimodal systems, whereas intermodal transport requires a network-based approach
focusing on complementarity and connections between the various modes.
Lastly, open intermodal information systems able to manage intermodal transport and network services efficiently and to guarantee a rational and constant real-time information and message flow have yet to be put in place.
A specific analysis of the friction costs allied to intermodal freight transport reveals that the main drawbacks compared to traditional unimodal transport can be identified as high costs, longer time frames, inferior quality, higher risks of damage to goods, restrictions as to the types of goods that can be transported, and more complex administrative procedures. These friction costs can be attributed first and foremost to the absence of coherent system networks and connections linking the latter, leading to a loss of efficiency and an increase in transfer costs.
Furthermore, the differing profitability and service quality levels amongst the various modes of transport do not sit easily alongside notions of customer satisfaction and real-time goods transfers. The culprit is the absence of broad electronic message
systems
linking different partners in the intermodal chain and the lack of an identification and information system for goods
organised on an intermodal basis.
Lastly, the entire system is dogged by a series of bottlenecks stemming from the absence of harmonised time frames and timetables amongst the various modes of transport, as a result of which the needs of the freight transport chain do not correspond to the operational demands of the resources employed in the process. By way of illustration, the working hours of drivers and crews do not tally with intermodal operations, and terminals are not always able to accommodate round-the-clock train and shipping timetables.
Clearly, the intermodal transport framework in Europe varies somewhat, with totally contrasting circumstances apparent in the various Member States. Hence the need to accord priority to the monitoring of the different circumstances, with the support of the Transport Intermodality Task Force, with a view to singling out specific lines of action designed to address emerging priorities in individual Member States.
The aims which the EU intends to pursue through the development of intermodality relate to the need to establish an integrated system comprising the various transport modes which offers seamless, customer-tailored door-to-door services, makes for efficient and cost-effective use of the transport system and promotes competition between operators. In its communication on intermodality and intermodal freight transport in the European Union, the Commission highlighted the objectives to be pursued in the intermodal transport sector and divided them into priority areas for action, known as "key actions": infrastructure and integrated means of transport, interoperable and interconnected traffic operations, and services and regulations common to all transport modes."@en1
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