The mobility package, which has entered into force, is already setting foot on the road: the requirements are difficult to meet

It poses great difficulties

The new elements of the Mobility Package, which came into force on August 20, establish that carriers must guarantee the regular return of drivers to the operations center or residence of the company every 4 weeks and that from now on the weekly rest of drivers can no longer be taken in the cab, so drivers must rest. in hotels or motels.

According to Povilas Drižas, Secretary General of the International Transport and Logistics Alliance (TTLA), the recently enacted regulations pose particular difficulties for Lithuanian shippers as there are many uncertainties in the requirements and the situation is exacerbated by the continued and rapid spread of coronavirus infection.

“First of all, there is no clear procedure to implement the requirement to return a driver who does not wish to be returned.

TTLA has repeatedly approached the European Commission (EC) individually and through other business organizations in Brussels for specific instructions or guidance, but the proper implementation of the requirement on a practical level remains unresolved.

Such uncertainty enormously complicates business processes and prevents adequate preparation for possible scenarios, ”he said about the new points.

According to the Secretary General of the Alliance, an equally important aspect is the ban on the driver’s weekly rest in the vehicle cabin, as it contradicts the applicable COVID-19 preventive safety measures during this period. According to P. Drižis, such a requirement will only increase migratory flows of drivers, which can create more favorable conditions for the spread of the virus.

“As air travel is kept to a minimum, drivers will be forced to travel by road, which may become increasingly difficult for EU Member States to restrict when traveling abroad.

Meanwhile, the ban on weekly rest in the cabin will force drivers to rest in worse conditions than in a modern, isolated cabin of a tractor.

Often the driver will have to rest in the same room with other people; this is completely incompatible with the principle of social distance.

It should be noted that the situation is complicated by the fact that there is a great shortage of parking lots and especially hotels near the main transport corridors of the EU, and as the experience of our companies shows, drivers from third countries are not always accepted ”Commented P. Drižas.

Saw the risks

The general secretary of Linava, Mečislavas Atroškevičius, had similar views on the newly entered points of the mobility package.

He said the recommended safety requirements for the spread of COVID-19 are being skipped today.

“Suppose that the weekly rest requirement in hotels, motels, etc.

The system is such that there are problems with the hotel infrastructure, there are not, and it is small that even where they exist, now those hoteliers are reluctant to take risks and try not to accept drivers due to COVID-19.

Another thing, even if a motel is found, the drivers don’t live one or two at a time. Rooms are for four to five drivers each. In this case, there were already such drivers among us who refuse to sleep there.

They say it is better to sleep in the one bedroom cabin because it is clean. That compulsion is bad, “he said, adding that the current situation can be described as the rescue of the drowned.

M. Atroškevičius also assured that the tendency of Lithuanian carriers to travel abroad did not disappear either.

“I don’t have the latest figures, but the process is in constant motion.

From November last year to the middle of this summer, our sector fell close to 6 thousand. drivers working in the transport sector. In general, it can be calculated that an employee pays around 330 euros of various state taxes per month.

With us today, the average old-age pension is about 370 euros. It can be understood that the conductors are 5 thousand. retirees earned a pension, ”he said.

Faces challenges

Tomas Stonis, CEO of Vlantana, one of the largest Lithuanian airlines, also asked how the new mobility package requirements were being met.

He assured that the company, like probably all operators, faces challenges today and is forced to quickly reorient itself and adapt to changing conditions.

“After the entry into force of the Mobility Package, some aspects of the operation had to be rethought and refocused to meet the requirements, adapt the workflow processes of the drivers to the Mobility Package,” he said, but reiterated that the current hotel and accommodation infrastructure in Europe is not adequate for accommodation. accept drivers from all European operators.

“After all, the number of motels in Europe is not the same as the need of all transport companies after the changes to the Mobility Package take effect.

Even the current accommodation facilities are suitable mainly for business class clients or tourists, but the needs of the drivers are different: they want to cook for themselves, they need care so that the living conditions of the hotel are not affected. Infrastructure in Europe is not prepared in this regard, risk management has not been assessed.

However, we do our best to approach these issues somewhat differently.

On our own initiative, we created the necessary infrastructure for the rest of the drivers: we rent premises with rooms and all the necessary facilities for the life and rest of our employees, and we have also entered into agreements with hotels and motels where our drivers stay ”, he said .

Speaking of the requirements of the Mobility Package, which has not yet entered into force, the manager stated that no less irrational, in his opinion, is the decision that trucks must return to the country of registration every 8 weeks.

“This driving increases the flow of empty vehicles, fuel consumption, increases pollution and car traffic on the roads.

All of this increases competition in freight forwarding to the Baltic countries, as a result of which smaller carriers will lose most of their profits, so a wave of bankruptcies is likely to subside, ”he predicted.

Preparing to appeal

As BNS announced on Tuesday, Lithuania is preparing a complaint with the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) against the provisions of the Mobility Package regulating the activities of carriers that are unacceptable to the country and other Central European countries and Oriental.

The government will decide at this meeting on Wednesday to ask the ECJ to partially repeal the Mobility Package and the two related EU regulations. If you agree to go to court, the Ministry of Justice will prepare a complaint and take other procedural steps.

According to the Ministry of Transport and Communications, the separate provisions of EU legislation on the mandatory return of tugs to the country of establishment, cabotage restrictions, driver assignment and rest rules, when infrastructure is not provided correspondingly, they do not satisfy the political and economic interests of Lithuania and adversely affect businesses.

It has been argued that the provision of the Mobility Package on the mandatory return of a vehicle to its place of establishment is incompatible with the objectives of the European Green Course and the objective of ensuring that the EU becomes a climate neutralized region by 2050 , as approved by the European Council. Imposing the obligation to return a truck can reduce the efficiency of the transportation system and increase unnecessary emissions, pollution, and congestion.

It is also observed that the provisions of the mobility package on compulsory return to the place of establishment, restrictions on cabotage and the rules on the posting of workers restrict the application of the freedoms of the internal market in the field of transport and modify the approach of competition in the internal market.

The time when tugs must return to their country of registration every 8 weeks should take effect from February 2022.