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Torstai 5. lokakuuta 2023-Strasbourg

11. Huono hygienia, turvattomuus ja pysäköintipaikkojen puute kuorma-autonkuljettajien levähdysalueilla (keskustelu)
Puheenvuorot videotiedostoina
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President. – The next item is the Commission statement on poor sanitary conditions, low levels of security and lack of parking places in rest areas for truck drivers ().

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Johannes Hahn, Member of the Commission. – Mr President, honourable Members, on behalf of Commissioner Vălean, who was unfortunately not able to be here this afternoon (like many others), I would like to reaffirm that the development of safe and secure parking areas with adequate sanitary facilities continues to be of high priority for the Commission. And I can say this with my own personal experience.

The COVID pandemic was a stark reminder that road transport drivers are essential. When transport came to a halt, truck drivers proved to be crucial in providing us with vaccines and essential goods to fill the shelves of our supermarkets in bringing food to our tables and keeping our economies running. The daily job is crucial for our society, and it is our responsibility to ensure that they can both work and rest safely and securely.

Deployment of safe and secure parking spaces is one of the elements contributing to the improvement of driver working conditions, which is key to sustaining and attracting workforce to the sector, which is facing significant driver shortages.

Let me guide you through the different measures that the Commission has taken in the last years to address this important topic. First, when it comes to legislation, EU standards for safe and secure parking areas have now become law, thanks to the Delegated Act, which was adopted in April 2022 and is in force since July 2022.

The standards have been carefully drafted in coordination with representatives of drivers, road transport companies, parking operators, etc. They include: four levels of security (brown, silver, gold and platinum) with the necessary security deterrents; these different levels will allow operators to choose according to the value of the goods they carry. Further, a common level of service regardless of the level of security; this includes important facilities for the comfort of drivers, such as showers, toilets, shops to purchase food and drinks, internet connections, etc. Finally, certification rules to ensure compliance with the union standards, which include an independent external auditor and regular audits.

We believe these new EU standards will greatly incentivise the development of a much-needed EU-wide network of safe and secure parking areas across Europe. I am glad to see that the market is interested and, since its entry into force, 20 new parking areas have been certified.

As came out clearly from the debate on Monday on ensuring European transportation works for women, safe and secure parking areas are especially important for female drivers. But we can’t wait for the market to develop the secure parking areas. We want to accelerate the rollout and this is why we are providing financial support.

Under the Connecting Europe Facility, we are supporting the upgrade of existing parking areas or the construction of new ones that meet the union standards. Since 2019, 52projects were selected for funding, providing more than 7000 additional safe and secure parking spots in Europe. Under the CEF Transport calls for proposals published last week on 26September, the Commission will continue to make available EUR 150million for this priority under the cohesion envelope, and another EUR 100million under the general envelope. In the previous call, we selected four projects with high maturity and quality that concern parking areas in Belgium, Slovenia and Spain, and we expect more interest this year.

Financial support to accelerate new parking areas is important, but the Commission believes we need to go one step further. Unfortunately, today there is no EU-wide legal requirement for Member States to provide safe and secure parking areas on their territory. This shouldn’t be a problem if there were a sufficient number of parking areas. But the sad reality is that it’s not the case, with notable differences between Member States. There is a general lack of appropriate spaces where drivers can have reasonable facilities in all Member States.

This is why, in the context of the revision of the TEN-T Regulation, the Commission proposed to introduce a clear obligation for Member States to have safe and secure parking areas on the TEN-T core network at a maximum distance of 100km by the end of 2040, extending the obligation to all of the TEN-T network by 2050. The general approach of the Council removed this legal obligation and instead called on Member States to give their best effort, and completely deleted the 2050 target.

Ϸվ’s position goes even further than our proposal by bringing forward the deadlines by ten years. The Commission is of the opinion that this is an opportunity we cannot miss. I call on the legislators to at least agree on the legal obligation during the trilogues. This is a crucial element for the well-being and good working conditions for drivers. But it should also be one for businesses, which will have reassurance that the drivers are safe and the goods are being transported safely. If we are not able to provide drivers with basic needs for doing their work, then we should not be surprised that people don’t want to come and work in this sector.

With that, I thank you for inviting the Commission on this crucial topic concerning the well-being of our truck drivers, and I’m looking forward to the debate and your comments.

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Marian-Jean Marinescu, în numele grupului PPE. – Domnule președinte, domnule comisar, mulțumesc pentru prezentare. Da, este un subiect extrem de complicat și important. Este și o consecință a Pachetului Mobilitate votat în condiții destul de, să spunem, controversate în Parlament, nerespectând unele reguli. Acel pachet de mobilitate a adus probleme pentru sector, pentru că a introdus celebra prevedere de întoarcere a camionului acasă, plus reguli de cabotaj și a introdus în același timp obligația de a avea timpul de odihnă nu în cabină, ci în hotel.

E adevărat că s-au introdus atunci și reguli pentru parcări, însă consecințele sunt cu totul altele în realitate. În primul rând, primele două n-au determinat o îmbunătățire a situației companiilor din Vest, ci mai degrabă s-a văzut că a fost o măsură de protecționism pentru statele din Vest, și bineînțeles că a crescut cantitatea de emisii, pentru că, să duci un camion acasă la opt săptămâni, asta înseamnă foarte multe emisii.

A doua consecință legată de timpii de odihnă este implementarea acestei prevederi foarte diferit în statele membre. Sunt companii care suportă consecințe grave, cu amenzi foarte mari, diferite de la stat la stat. Unele aplică, altele nu aplică acest sistem. Deci toată această problemă a creat mari probleme pentru companiile de transport și în același timp, pentru tot sectorul.

Cred că ar trebui să existe reguli foarte clare care să poată determina și posibilitatea de infringement pentru ca aceste parcări să existe sau, până nu există parcările, în special securizate, să nu se aplice amenzi, pentru că altfel este o implementare diferită, inegală și care afectează foarte mult sectorul.

Vă mulțumesc pentru participarea la această dezbatere și sper ca în curând să avem niște reguli foarte clare.

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Thomas Rudner, im Namen der S&D-Fraktion. – Herr Präsident, sehr geehrter Herr Kommissar, liebe Kolleginnen und Kollegen! Wenn wir von den konkreten hygienischen Bedingungen auf Raststätten sprechen, müssen wir feststellen: Es fehlt immer noch der Zugang zu kostenlosen, sauberen sanitären Anlagen wie Duschen und Toiletten. Es gibt außerdem zu wenige Parkplätze auf Autobahnen und Fernstraßen, sodass es für die Fahrerinnen und Fahrer sehr schwierig ist, die erforderlichen Pausen einzuhalten.

Diese Bedingungen machen es immer schwieriger, Menschen für diesen Beruf zu begeistern. Das aktuelle Beispiel aus Gräfenhausen in Deutschland zeigt uns klar, mit welch miesen Bedingungen wir es hier zu tun haben. Fahrerinnen und Fahrer aus Nicht-EU-Ländern haben vom 17.Juli bis 30.September gestreikt, um überhaupt bezahlt zu werden.

Denn es geht nicht nur um die Hygienebedingungen. Schlechte Arbeitsbedingungen und Sozialdumping im Straßengüterverkehr fördern die geringe Attraktivität des Berufsbildes. Arbeitnehmerinnen und Arbeitnehmer aus Nicht-EU-Ländern werden systematisch diskriminiert. Wir haben es hier mit unhaltbaren Zuständen im internationalen Güterkraftverkehr zu tun.

Der offensichtliche Mangel an Lkw-Fahrerinnen und -Fahrern in der EU führt zu steigenden Transportkosten und einer geringeren Verfügbarkeit von Laderaum. Dieser Mangel bedroht die wirtschaftliche Integration auf europäischer Ebene.

Zahlreiche empirische Studien beschreiben die Arbeitssituation der Fahrerinnen und Fahrer als moderne Sklaverei, die im industriellen Maß stattfindet, wobei zahlreiche Straftatbestände erfüllt werden und Verstöße gegen EU-Standards vorliegen. Geltende Vorschriften des MobilitätspaketsI werden in der Praxis unzureichend eingehalten. Neben der Diskriminierung der Fahrerinnen und Fahrer führt dies zu Wettbewerbsverzerrungen für den gesamten europäischen Transportmarkt.

Die bisherigen Anstrengungen der Kommission und des Rates haben keine Verbesserung der Lage herbeigeführt. Bestehende Herausforderungen werden nicht oder nicht ausreichend adressiert. Als Sozialdemokratinnen und Sozialdemokraten haben wir hart für die Rechte der schwer arbeitenden Lkw-Fahrerinnen und -Fahrer gekämpft. All das würde zunichtegemacht werden, wenn die verbindlichen Regeln einfach nicht kontrolliert werden. Die Kontrolldichte und Bußgelder sind in der Praxis zu gering, um Lenkungswirkungen zu entfalten. Nationales Arbeits- und Sozialrecht in einzelnen Mitgliedstaaten ist nicht immer kompatibel mit Vorgaben in anderen Mitgliedstaaten, zum Beispiel was die Mindestlöhne angeht.

Meine drei konkreten Forderungen hierzu sind: Verstöße gegen Sozialvorschriften brauchen angemessene Konsequenzen. Nur so können sie Lenkungseffekte auf europäischer Ebene entfalten. Bußgelder müssen deutlich höher sein als der wirtschaftliche Erfolg. Dies ist in vielen Mitgliedstaaten nicht der Fall. Eine wirksame Durchsetzung ist der Schlüssel zur Umsetzung des MobilitätspaketsI. Derzeit sind viele Behörden mit unterschiedlichen Zuständigkeiten mit den Kontrollen beauftragt, was zu mangelhafter Durchsetzung der Vorschriften führt. Die Höhe der anwendbaren nationalen Mindestlöhne und der anrechenbaren Lohnbestandteile zur Einhaltung des Mindestlohns ist für Transportunternehmen und Behörden oft nicht transparent.

Die Kommission sollte daher Leitlinien für Sozialstandards im europäischen Kraftverkehr definieren; bestehendes Arbeitsrecht in einzelnen EU-Mitgliedstaaten sollte auf seine Zulässigkeit überprüft und den Mitgliedstaaten die Anrechnung von Lohnbestandteilen wie Spesen auf den Mindestlohn untersagt werden. Dabei bedarf es einer europäischen Gesamtlösung, die nicht den einzelnen Mitgliedstaaten überlassen werden sollte.

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Izaskun Bilbao Barandica, en nombre del Grupo Renew. – Señor presidente, señor comisario, uno de los mandatos que contiene el paquete de movilidad es la mejora de las áreas de descanso de última generación, digitalizadas, con servicios para hombres y mujeres, accesibles, vigiladas, seguras. Esto supone una mejora de las condiciones de vida y trabajo para este colectivo, y contribuye también a la seguridad vial. Asimismo, fomenta el relevo generacional y la captación de nuevos y nuevas profesionales en un sector del que depende hoy el 70% del transporte de mercancías en la Unión.

Aunque cumplamos las previsiones de crecimiento del tren, las organizaciones del sector fijan en 100000 el déficit de plazas en nuestra red principal de carreteras y animan a resolverlo para el año 2030. Tenemos las normas, los estándares y los servicios que deben incluir las áreas según las cuatro categorías establecidas. Estamos desplegando infraestructuras para combustibles alternativos y para servicios inteligentes de transporte, apoyándonos en los fondos de recuperación y el Mecanismo «Conectar Europa». La sinergia entre todos estos objetivos y herramientas financieras deja sin excusas a los Estados que incumplen sus obligaciones sobre aparcamientos seguros que, con razón, reclama un sector tan importante para nuestra competitividad.

Y sí, señor comisario, estamos de acuerdo con que la obligación de construir aparcamientos seguros aparezca en el Reglamento RTE-T.

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Francisco Guerreiro, em nome do Grupo Verts/ALE. – Senhor Presidente, Senhor Comissário, Caros Colegas, este debate tornou-se fundamental quando passámos por uma crise pandémica e verificámos a importância dos trabalhadores que trabalham e laboram neste setor, não só porque eles são fundamentais para distribuir os bens necessários à nossa existência, mas porque sem eles grande parte da nossa economia não funciona. Portanto, as propostas de que aqui estamos a falar, assim como as palavras do Comissário, são, creio eu, bem-vindas para todos.

Há, contudo, algumas matérias que é preciso focar. Quando falamos nestes parqueamentos mais digitalizados, com mais segurança, com mais qualidade para os motoristas, temos de ter em atenção também a questão das novas tecnologias que vão emergir; e, portanto, estes espaços deverão incluir, além de tudo o que foi dito aqui pelo Comissário, a capacitação dos próprios camiões e das próprias estruturas físicas para poderem gerar ou distribuir energia limpa e renovável.

Por conseguinte, tal é também fundamental, tendo em conta que vai haver uma transição neste setor e, portanto, esta transição ambiental também se motiva e se foca nesta especificidade.

Há que garantir também que existe uma renovação da força laboral e que estas pessoas podem ter a garantia de que este mercado, este setor, é atrativo, para atrair mais jovens e mais mulheres, com garantias de segurança, com garantias higieno-sanitárias, com garantias de mobilidade, e reduz o stress que estes trabalhadores têm devido aos longos períodos de viagens. É igualmente necessário garantir a segurança jurídica para que os trabalhadores que vêm de fora do mercado único não sejam explorados.

Desta forma, é possível garantir também uma coesão: garantias não só para os trabalhadores que estão legalmente e operam legalmente dentro do mercado interno da União Europeia, mas também para os trabalhadores que são de outros países e trabalham cá.

Gostaria só de referir que a automatização deste setor, ou seja, dos transportes coletivos de mercadorias, está também em marcha e que, por conseguinte, teremos de ter em atenção o impacto social desta transição.

É por isso que – e, curiosamente, estando aqui presente o comissário que debateu os orçamentos plurianuais da União Europeia – poderá ser interessante, num futuro próximo, pensar em mecanismos de rendimento básico para estes trabalhadores, porque o stress e a pressão que existirá com a automatização do setor automóvel requererá novas soluções e novos pensamentos fora da caixa.

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Ангел Джамбазки, от името на групата ECR. – Г-н Председател, пакетът „Мобилност“ е един от големите провали на Европейската комисия, г-н Комисар, и Вие го знаете отлично. Пакетът „Мобилност“ беше лобистко законодателство, чиято единствена цел и задача беше да премести водачите на тежкотоварни автомобили от България, от Румъния, от периферните държави към фирмите в Централна и Западна Европа.

Темата, която разискваме днес, показва, доказва без всякакво съмнение този огромен провал. Покажете ми един паркинг в Белгия, който има тези санитарни условия, който има охрана, където има къде да заспи човек и къде да се изкъпе. Няма такива паркинги. Няма такива паркинги и в Южна Франция, няма такива паркинги и в Германия. Повечето паркинги са едно отклонение от пътя, на който спираш, а във Франция е добре да не спираш, защото новите европейци, които ги покани вашата колега фон дер Лайен и онази предишната, която (неразбираеми думи), се качват в движение и разтоварват камионите. Това е огромен проблем.

Всъщност става ясно, че ставаше дума за една огромна лобистка история, която гледаше да премести работна ръка и да докара източните фирми да работят в Западна Европа. Не, нищо не се подобри, никакви условия не се подобриха и го знаете прекрасно. Няма какво да отговорите, защото това е абсолютно видимо. Българските и румънските фирми и останалите от периферията бяха принуждавани да си правят европейски, да си правят белгийски регистрации и те да строят своите паркинги. Мога да ви покажа Маасмехелен, Антверпен. Мога да ви покажа български фирми, които са направили своите паркинги, само че хората им плащат данъците в Кралство Белгия, а не в България. Това е разликата. Това е огромен проблем, защото пари, направени от наши работници, отиват в бюджета на Кралство Белгия, а не в нашия бюджет. И там помагат за здравеопазване, социални дейности, а не при нас. Нашите работници работят за Белгия благодарение на пакета „Мобилност“, който беше тежък лобизъм, то това му беше целта. Вие прекрасно знаете тези неща. Да не говорим, че в тази зала се говори страшно много за екология, за емисии, а задължихте хиляди камиони да се разхождат празни нагоре-надолу, празни курсове, да горят гориво, това гориво да отива във въздуха и да замърсява въздуха, г-н Комисар. Замърсява се въздуха благодарение на лобизма на Европейската комисия. И тук, много странно, някои колеги говорят за чист въздух. Какъв чист въздух, като с ваше решение се замърсява въздуха страхотно, тежко, видимо. Така че няма никакви условия. Това е ясно. То нямаше да има, няма кой да го направи, щяхте да отчуждавате имоти, да строите хотели. Какви хотели ще строите? Искате да правите камиони без шофьори и строите хотели? Изобщо една объркана е тази история, но тя едно показва: Европейската комисия, Европейският парламент отидоха много надалеч от това, което трябва да бъде Европейският съюз – свободен пазар, конкуренция, успех, доходи, добър живот за всички граждани. Много далече от това, но това го признавате в момента пред 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 колеги, 15 с председателя. А когато беше пълна залата, си говорихме други работи. Което е признание за позор. Това е тежък позор, тежък провал.

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Joachim Kuhs, im Namen der ID-Fraktion. – Herr Präsident, lieber Herr Kommissar! Wir haben uns heute ja schon öfter gesehen– in anderer Funktion–, aber ab und zu am Donnerstagnachmittag haben wir ja immer schöne Themen, mit denen wir uns beschäftigen, bei denen wir uns auch meistens einig sind, also da gibt es wenig Dissens.

Ja, Lkw-Fahrer sind knapp. Wenn ich nur an Deutschland denke, da gibt es eine Studie von 2022, die geht von einem Fahrermangel aus, dass 60000 Lkw-Fahrer allein in Deutschland fehlen. Und wenn es um die Parkplätze geht, da sind wir uns auch einig: Es sind einfach zu wenig. Wir können noch so viele Mobilitätspakete schnüren, es wird einfach nicht reichen, weil der Transport so viel erfordert. Eine Studie des Bundesverbands Güterkraftverkehr, Logistik und Entsorgung in Deutschland kam zum Ergebnis, dass derzeit wohl 40000 Parkplätze nur in Deutschland fehlen. Wie viele es dann EU-weit sind, die Zahl habe ich nicht. Also wir sehen, wir haben ein riesiges Problem.

Dann kommt dazu, dass sich eben alle auf diese Parkplätze drängen und dass wir dann diese großen Probleme mit den sanitären Anlagen haben, dass dann alles einfach nicht reicht. Es reicht hinten und vorne nicht, und da können wir noch so viel versuchen zu machen.

Natürlich müssen sich die Firmen, die Unternehmen in der Logistikbranche darum kümmern, dass der Beruf des Lkw-Fahrers attraktiver gemacht wird, indem sie die Arbeitsbedingungen verbessern und die Löhne anheben. Aber da sind Sie ja auch gefordert, denn Sie machen ja durch die Vorschriften vieles einfach auch schwerer, und das ist letztendlich auch mein Petitum an Sie: Wir können so nicht weitermachen.

Ich habe oft den Eindruck, dass wir uns um die Lkw-Fahrer weniger kümmern als um die lieben Tiere, die Hühner, die Schweine, die Kühe usw., denn dafür haben wir unglaublich viele Regeln und kümmern uns darum. Aber die Lkw-Fahrer, wo bleiben die denn?

Ich weiß, Herr Kommissar, Sie können hier nicht die ganze Welt retten, das ist unmöglich, das kann keiner von uns. Aber bitte sorgen Sie dafür, dass die Arbeit dieser Menschen erträglicher, dass sie lebenswerter wird und dass es vor allem eben nicht noch mehr Vorschriften gibt. Es gibt schon zu viele Vorschriften, und wir können nicht jetzt noch da draufsetzen und noch mehr Vorschriften machen, damit machen wir das Leben der Lkw-Fahrer nur noch schwerer.

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Andor Deli (NI). – Elnök Úr! Sajnos azt kell mondanom, hogy egyáltalán nem vagyok meglepődve azon, hogy ma a kamionos parkolókról kell vitáznunk. Már évekkel ezelőtt, a mobilitási csomag körüli tárgyalások alkalmával felhívtuk a figyelmet arra, hogy a pihenőidő kötelezően kabinon kívül töltése nem tud majd működni a valóságban, hiszen már akkor sem volt elegendő kiépített parkoló, pihenőhely. Abban az időben azzal seperték le ezeket az aggályokat itt, a Parlamentben és a Bizottságnál is, hogy a jogszabályok hatálybalépésének az időpontjára az uniós támogatások segítségével gyorsan meg fog oldódni a helyzet.

De láthatjuk, hogy nem történt változás, ezért is vagyunk ma is itt. Ezért most ismételten arra kérném a Bizottságot, hogy vizsgálja felül a jogszabályi keretet, és álljon elő olyan konkrét jogszabályi javaslatokkal és támogatási eszközökkel, amelyeknek köszönhetően gyorsan és hatékonyan változást lehet elérni a hivatásos sofőrök munkakörülményeinek a javításában, ahhoz, hogy a szakma becsületét helyreállítsuk.

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Karolin Braunsberger-Reinhold (PPE). – Herr Präsident! Vielen Dank, Kommissar Hahn, für die heutige Aussprache. Der Transport über die Straße ist noch immer ein Schwerpunkt im Güterverkehr, doch Lkw-Fahrerinnen und Lkw-Fahrer haben oftmals auf europäischen Straßen und Rastplätzen keine sicheren Arbeitsbedingungen.

Allein in Deutschland fehlen derzeit laut dem Bundesverband Güterkraftverkehr Logistik und Entsorgung, das wurde bereits angesprochen, circa 40000 Lkw-Parkplätze. Zur Wahrheit gehört auch, dass zusätzlich alleine in Deutschland nach aktuellen Zahlen sogar 100000 Lkw-Fahrerinnen und Lkw-Fahrer fehlen, die on top Parkplätze benötigen würden. Die Stellplätze, die vorhanden sind, sind häufig unhygienisch und gefährlich.

Ich verbringe selbst viel Zeit auf der Autobahn. Ich glaube, gerade als Frau möchte man nachts nicht auf Lkw-Parkplätze fahren, und man möchte auch grundsätzlich momentan nicht auf Rastplätze fahren, das gehört auch zur Wahrheit dazu. Das heißt, sowohl Männer als auch besonders Frauen sind von dem Bereich betroffen.

Stellplätze gehören im Transportgewerbe zum Arbeitsplatz. Eine andere Wahl gibt es nachts, an Sonn- oder an Feiertagen häufig nicht. Sorgen wir endlich dafür, dass gefährliche und verzweifelte Parkmanöver, nächtliche Übergriffe und unhygienische Zustände der Vergangenheit angehören. Sorgen wir dafür, dass Lkw-Fahrerinnen und Lkw-Fahrer denselben Schutz am Arbeitsplatz genießen können wie andere Berufsgruppen und wie er ihnen rechtlich zusteht.

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Vlad Gheorghe (Renew). – Domnule președinte, camionagii, tiriști, șoferi, toți cetățeni europeni, disprețuiți sau ignorați în Uniunea Europeană, deși alimentele, medicamentele, toate produsele de care noi avem nevoie sunt livrate de ei! Îi lăsăm pradă hoților în parcări nesigure, îi abandonăm la cozi interminabile în vămi, îi punem să suporte singuri toate dezavantajele muncii lor.

Șoferii pleacă de lângă familii cu zilele și traversează Europa. Sunt puși să descarce mărfurile, dar nu sunt plătiți pentru asta, ba chiar plătesc ei pagubele după ce sunt atacați de hoți. Uneori își pierd chiar viața. Acum doi ani, românul Mihai Spătaru a fost ucis într-o parcare din Franța. În ciuda petiției cu zeci de mii de semnături pe care am transformat-o aici în rezoluție, situația șoferilor europeni s-a schimbat, dar prea puțin.

Este intolerabil să nu ne apărăm cetățenii. Este rușinos că în Uniunea Europeană, meseria îți pune viața în pericol. Este datoria noastră să îmbunătățim acum viața șoferilor de camion.

Catch-the-eye procedure

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Jiří Pospíšil (PPE). – Pane předsedající, ta debata byla velmi zajímavá a ukazuje případ, kdy my na jedné straně přijímáme legislativu, kterou třeba vylepšujeme pracovní podmínky určitých pracovníků, nutnost spát v hotelích, zkracujeme lhůty, po kterou musí řidič kamionu jezdit, ale na druhou stranu neděláme nic potom pro to, aby tato pravidla byla naplnitelná, aby to byla reálná pravidla. A to mně připadá jako velký problém, pane komisaři. A takový obraz a takové případy bohužel poškozují obraz Evropské unie. Přijmeme legislativu, kterou v praxi nelze realizovat. Co si občané a nejen řidiči kamionů potom mohou myslet o Evropské unii? A já tedy moc prosím, ve chvíli, kdy přijmeme legislativu takto ambiciózní ve vztahu k sociálním podmínkám řidičů kamionů, musíme logicky řešit i situaci, jak ji reálně naplnit. To znamená stav parkovišť, stav odpočívadel atd. Asi by to mělo být věcí soukromých investorů, případně členských států, ale když legislativu upravujeme my, je třeba, aby nás i tato druhá stránka zajímala.

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Mick Wallace (The Left). – Mr President, Commissioner, you said that if we don’t provide good facilities, we’re going to struggle to attract drivers to the industry. And you’re right. At the moment, the average age of lorry drivers in Europe is 47. Young people are not attracted to the industry and one of the main reasons is because the facilities are so poor. I mean, you’ve only to drive around Europe yourself. I mean, apart from France, facilities are so poor across most of Europe. Likewise, I mean the lack of safe space and good facilities is one of the reasons as well why there are so few women involved. In Ireland only 2% of heavy goods vehicles drivers are women.

Now, in the last 30 years, we have built an awful lot of motorway in Europe, in Ireland, with the help of EU money. How come they were allowed to build motorways with EU money without putting in proper rest areas? Because they’re almost non-existent in Ireland. It’s crazy. And I’m just wondering, going forward, should people get planning permission to build a motorway without providing the facilities?

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Seán Kelly (PPE).A Uachtaráin, I have great admiration for truck drivers. They play an integral part in maintaining economic activity and ensuring that the goods we need are delivered and appear on our shelves. Yet, truck drivers, as has been said, face dangerous conditions in their rest areas, in addition to poor sanitary conditions. This just is not good enough.

According to the International Road Transport Union, Europe is lacking 100000 parking places for truck drivers to take their rest, while most of the existing parking areas for 300000 trucks are below acceptable standards. As truckers are obliged to take legally mandated risks, we should protect them during these periods. Issues remain with the number of rest stops. So it’s not surprising Europe is facing the most acute driver shortage in history, with over 20 % of the jobs unfilled. If we do not address these conditions quickly, young generations will not enter the sector, and we only have to look at the experience of United Kingdom post-Brexit to understand the havoc this can bring to a country’s economy.

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Clare Daly (The Left). – Mr President, I think there’s no doubt about it that there is a massive shortage of truck drivers across the EU, which is having a major impact on the economy as a whole. And, as colleagues have said, one of the key reasons for this is the deterioration in working conditions, which is a significant factor on the recruitment problem that we have with new drivers – a situation fuelled by the drive for profits and the liberalisation taking place in the industry. The result of these problems and policies is a massive fatigue among transport workers, whether it’s a pilot in the cockpit or a lorry driver in the cab, long working hours, long periods away from home and poor rest conditions are contributing factors.

Now, in 2021, the ETF stated that 60% of lorry drivers say they regularly have to drive while tired, and a third say they’ve fallen asleep at the wheel. These people are literally taking their lives and the lives of others into their own hands and we have shown ourselves unable to properly regulate. The state of rest areas is alarming. Roads are busier, schedules tighter, but there’s little being done to improve drivers conditions, and we have to do an awful lot more.

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Johannes Hahn, Member of the Commission. – Mr President, first, I would like to thank the honourable Members for this exchange, in particular as I have not lived very often here in this House, but also in other parliaments that all speakers who took the floor from the very left to the very right shared the same opinion about the topic. And I think this is something which should guide us in all our efforts to indeed improve the situation for truck drivers. And therefore, I can reassure you that I have taken good notes of your comments and suggestions. And in order to foster the development of safe, secure and, may I say, well cleaned parking areas and will pass them, of course, onto my fellow colleague, Commissioner Vălean.

I have already explained how the Commission is aiming to increase the availability of such parking areas through financial support via CEF and through a legal obligation on Member States to build the appropriate infrastructure along the TEN-T network. At least, as a starter, I would say in parallel we need to continue our efforts to support the development of such parking facilities. This is a key aspect on which our services are working in the Commission expert group on safe and secure parking areas. In the following weeks, the Commission will also launch a specific study on the availability and development of EU safe and secure parking areas that take stock of the current state of play. We will also map further needs and should include a list of recommendations to increase the number and quality of safe and secure parking areas. The results of this study will be presented in a report to the European Ϸվ and the Council by the end of next year.

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President. – This interesting and important debate is now closed.

Written statements (Rule 171)

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Kosma Złotowski (ECR), in writing. – Road freight transport is a key component of the European economy. Any disruption to this sector has an immediate impact on the price and availability of many goods. One of the biggest problems that discourages people from working in the sector is the disastrous state of parking and rest facilities for drivers. When the Commission and Ϸվ look to the distant future, truck drivers who drive through France, Belgium or Germany every day cannot find a rest area with a clean shower or toilet, or fear robbery and assault by illegal immigrants. The EU does not want drivers to be able to sleep in a clean and safe cabin of their vehicle, but the fact that the only option is a dingy hotel with no safe parking or sanitary facilities is of no concern to anyone in Brussels. Is the Commission keeping its promise to support investment in modern rest places? I heard a lot about this during the work on the mobility package. We warned then that the legislation was out of touch with reality in many places. What does the Commission intend to do to change this before there are no more people willing to work in this profession?

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