Reply to the 17th annual report of the European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT)
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly debate on 5 October 1971 (10th Sitting) (see Doc. 3013,see Doc. 3013, report of the Committtee on Economic Affairs and Development). Text adopted by the Assembly on 5 October 1971 (10th Sitting).
The Assembly,
1. Having examined the report of the Committee on Economic Affairs and Development (
Doc. 3013) in reply to the 17th annual report of the European Conference of Ministers of Transport (ECMT) (
Doc. 3012) ;
2. Recalling that in 1950 it advocated by
Recommendation 7 the co-ordination of communications and transport policies between member countries - an objective specified by the 1953 Brussels Protocol which set up ECMT,
3. Expresses satisfaction at the completion of a European Highway Code, and at the recent ECMT agreements on automatic coupling and on the introduction of a multilateral quota for road freight transport ;
4. Emphasises the responsibility of ECMT for ensuring the early implementation of these agreements, and in particular those concerning the European Highway Code and automatic coupling, both of which extend to the countries of Eastern and Western Europe ;
5. Trusts that ECMT will continue its efforts in the field of railway transport to ensure the definition and the harmonisation of major European rail routes, the introduction of international through rates, the international standardisation of the age limits within which reduced fares for children apply, and to obtain the simplification and speeding up of customs procedures ;
6. Calls for the development of efforts to harmonise the social and fiscal regulations applying to road transport between member States ;
7. Stresses the need for greater safety precautions for rail and inland waterways transport ;
8. Expresses the hope that member governments, the European Conference of Ministers of Transport and the European Communities will take steps to ensure the concerted adoption of different national systems of ultra-rapid land communications ; and believes that ECMT can usefully contribute in making available its own technical assistance and by taking appropriate initiatives in its Council of Ministers ;
9. Regrets that, despite the progress so far achieved and the prospect of certain further advances in this field, a real coordination of the means of transport and communications in Europe continues to raise major problems ;
10. Records its disappointment at the continued difficulties with regard to the comparison of costs of different means of transport, as well as with regard to defining the "E" road network, both essential to the economic needs of contemporary Europe ; and believes that ECMT can effectively contribute to the solution of these problems ;
11. Recalling its
Recommendation 631 (1971), in which it gave its views on the organisation of a European network of trunk road communications, expresses its regret that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe should have limited itself to transmitting this recommendation for opinion to ECMT (
Doc. 2934 Addendum) ; but trusts that the latter will be able to make known its comments with a minimum of delay ;
12. Hopes that fruitful co-operation between ECMT and the European Conference of Ministers responsible for Town and Country Planning planned for 1973 will enable there to be defined the different steps called for if means of transport and communications are to be better adapted to the economic and human needs of Europe.
