Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-06-14-Speech-3-355"
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".
Mr President, Mr Vice-President, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to start by expressing my very warm gratitude for the constructive cooperation on the part not only of the Commission, of the Committee secretariat, of the railway companies, and of the railway industry, but also, and not least, of the groups’ shadow rapporteurs, for it was also thanks to them that it was possible for this report to be adopted in the Committee on Transport and Tourism with nobody either voting against it or abstaining.
The effect of ERTMS is to incorporate digital technology into the infrastructure of railways, with the prospect, after many decades, of the twenty different signalling systems still in operation today being consigned to the past and ERTMS, as a single system throughout all the EU’s Member States, replacing them. The system improves safety, reduces building and maintenance costs and increases capacity to a considerable degree, while also resulting in a considerable reduction in the cost of locomotives, which it will be possible to manufacture in greater numbers. This standardised train security system will make interoperability considerably simpler and speedier, enabling the benefits of long stretches, particularly in goods traffic, to be experienced in travelling across Europe; any substantial increase in the number of such journeys is made an impossibility by the technical and political patchwork quilt that we have now, and so it pays to make investment in ERTMS a priority and to emphasise the need for it.
Investments in ERTMS are regarded as equal to investments in infrastructure and treated as cross-border projects, resulting in up to 50% co-funding from the EU, not only for ERTMS-compatible locomotives, but also for infrastructure – for those sections that cross borders, at any rate. I firmly endorse the memorandum of understanding by which the EU and the national railways have agreed to equip six corridors with ERTMS. These corridors are symbolic of the reunion of Europe, and the implementation of ERTMS in them will, among other things, overcome national egoisms, since it will be necessary to think and act in a European way. If these projects were to be successful in the short term, it would encourage further initiatives, but what is also necessary is that the issue be kept at the top of the agenda, and not only by those who take decisions in the EU; the Member States too, along with industry, infrastructure manager and rail operators must make ERTMS a priority and all push and pull in the same direction at the same time.
If, though, trains are to be able to travel speedily into the future without damaging the environment, there are important framework conditions to be put in place. The external costs of the Eurovignette must be internalised, and, as an example of how to do this, we may take Switzerland, where tolls are four times what they are in Germany, are levied on all road and on all goods vehicles. Up to now, competition in the EU has been unfair; in Germany, for example, added on to the massive fiscal drawbacks, track charges constitute a rail toll on all trains and on all lines, whilst lorries have up to now been charged tolls only on motorways and only if they weigh over 12 tonnes. Not only does ERTMS offer Europe an opportunity to grow together, but it is also essential to the medium and long term development of the rail industry and to the 15 000 highly-skilled jobs in it. Even today, the railway industry is a hit on the export front, with orders for locomotives placed by Korea, Taiwan, India, Saudi Arabia and China, and infrastructure projects in those countries, clearly demonstrating its market potential. If ERTMS can build on the foundation of a strong market in Europe, it can be the standard for the world.
I have a vision of a European rail network from Lisbon to Tallinn, from Paris to Warsaw and from London to Athens via Budapest. With ERTMS, it will be taking a mighty step further forwards. It is with that in mind that I hope that we will all, tomorrow, confirm the committee’s vote, and would ask you to reject all the amendments that have now been tabled. I would also ask the Council, when it votes on this, to follow this House’s example."@en1
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