Answer given by Ms Vălean on behalf of the European Commission
26.4.2021
1. The new social and market rules, adopted under Mobility Package I, provide the framework to ensure improved conditions for cross-border transport services in the EU. All of these provisions have now entered into force, including the new rules in Regulation (EC) No 561/2006[1] on driving and rest times, which apply since 20 August 2020.
2. The Commission has been made aware of the ban for road transport drivers to spend their daily and weekly rests in vehicles up to 3.5 t in France. Following this, the Commission has started a dialogue with the French authorities to obtain the necessary information to assess whether these rules would amount to an infringement of EC law. The Commission is also in contact with them to ensure that truck drivers have access to the necessary facilities along the road during the COVID-19 pandemic. In that regard, the French authorities have made a map available online of rest and service areas and ‘road centres’ that are opened along the main network.
3. The safety and security of parking areas is a matter of priority for the Commission, which is currently working on a delegated act establishing EU standards and certification procedures for safe and secure parking areas (SSTPAs). The creation of SSTPAs is also supported by EU funding under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) for Transport. During the last 2019 CEF call for proposals, the Commission decided to finance 11 projects for the development of 41 EU SSTPAs in the EU. The list of existing EU certified SSTPAs is available online[2] and regularly updated.