The German government is developing a compensation package with its national road haulage industry as the European Commission (EC) prepares to apply the stricter Euro-5 emission limits from 2009. Berlin has drafted several proposals to compensate road transport operators, two of which have already won EC approval as allowable subsidies under its usually strict state aid rules.
An
EC official says: "Each EU member can go ahead with their support measures," as long as they avoid subsidies that would give one national transport sector an unfair advantage over another. One approved measure is a planned reduction in annual taxes for vehicles which are already subject to Germany's 'Maut' road tolls. This programme could be worth as much as €50m (£34m). Also touted is an innovation programme which would subsidise operators.
