Italian Transport Minister Matteo Salvini’s appearance during the election campaign at the Brenner Pass on Monday lasted an hour, during which he repeated his call for all truck driving bans to be lifted and threatened to refer the case to the European Court of Justice. “Tyrol doesn’t have to worry,” says European legal expert Univ.-Prof. Dr. Walter Obwexer from the Institute for European Law and International Law of the University of Innsbruck.
“The possible lifting of the Tyrolean anti-transit measures would also have a huge impact on the South Tyrolean and Trentino population, but all these consequences seem to play no role when it comes to the interests of the Italian freight lobby. If there is actually a court ruling, the EU will have to decide whether the health of an entire region can be sidelined by international freight transport,” explains the Tyrolean State Council for Transport, René Zumtobel.
Shoulder shot between the state of Tyrol and the federal government
“We are building on the Alpine Convention, including the Transport Protocol, the European Commission’s Transport White Paper and the Green Deal, all of which provide for a reduction in road freight, a shift to rail and a transport transition. . Italy has signed the relevant treaties and supported the measures of the European Union – Salvini should remember that too,” LH Mattle responded to Salvini’s appearance on the South Tyrolean side of the Brenner border.
LH Mattle: The collapse could not be prevented
“Without enforcing justified driving bans and traffic restrictions, a traffic collapse could no longer be prevented. This would have far-reaching consequences for the Tyrolean population and the entire European economy. I thank Minister Gewessler, who will use all legal options to defend the Tyrolean emergency measures,” said LH Mattle.
The process takes up to two years
European law expert Walter Obwexer explained the initial situation: “According to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, a Member State has the right to initiate legal proceedings against another Member State before the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg in the event of suspected infringements. of the contract. But for that, Italy must send a formal letter to the Commission asking it to take action itself. If the Commission does not respond to the Italian letter or rejects the request to initiate proceedings, Italy itself can refer the case to the Court of Justice. On average, proceedings at the ECJ take one and a half to two years.
The movement of goods can be restricted
“In principle, Tyrol doesn’t have to worry. The free movement of goods is not unlimited, but can be restricted for important reasons. The Tyrolean measures are all designed to be EU compliant. They are based on the protection of the environment and the health of the population, as well as on the functionality of the highway and also serve the purpose of transferring heavy traffic from road to rail, as stipulated in the Alpine Convention and also in the formulated objectives by the Union,” Obwexer explains.
The EU plans to tighten air quality
“The European Union plans to tighten the Air Quality Directive with regard to air limit values, which are currently largely respected in Tyrol, which plays into Austria’s hands. But Austria will also be able to prove in the short term that if truck driving bans are lifted, air limits will deteriorate again. Italy will not achieve its maximum demand, namely the lifting of all Tyrolean bans. In the worst case, adjustments to individual measures will be necessary, but from the current perspective these will not be completely eliminated,” Obwexer is convinced.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
