The annual congress of the greatest professional association for motorways - ASECAP - was held this year from 29 to 31 May in Brussels, which is the political seat of the EU and the registered seat of the Association.

This years congress was entitled: Tolled infrastructures for safe, smart and clean transport.

The congress brought together 250 experts from all areas of motorway management. Decision makers, non-governmental associations and professional organizations took part in discussions on road mobility in the next decade, and on challenges the future developments will bring. The key word was sustainability, not only environmental but also economic, financial and social.

The congress was opened by the ASECAPs departing president J.L. Feito, representative of the Spanish motorway association ASETA who pointed out that the congress is now for the first time held in Brussels in times of recession followed by the fall in traffic and revenues. He emphasized that best experts will be analyzing during these two days concession model application schemes and public private partnership initiatives in motorway sector.

Private and public sector synergy

The first day of the congress was consecrated to political discussions on concession models and private-public partnerships, which are the most efficient tools for the construction, financing and management of safe, smart and clean motorway infrastructure. High representatives from relevant European institutions took part in the first part of presentations: A. Krukowska, Transport Attaché of the Permanent Representation of Poland to the EU, and P. de Mayer, Transport Attaché of the Permanent Representation of Belgium to the EU, G. Meissner, MEP TRAN Committee Member, S. Schmidt, Head of Unit "Land Transport Policy", DG MOVE, European Commission, and P. Boeuf,Head of the Road Division, European Investment Bank. The participants attempted to determine the ways in which private and public sectors can cooperate for the benefit of motorway users.

Redefining the Trans-European road network

A. Krukowska presented transport priorities on which Poland intends to focus its EU presidency starting from June this year. She also mentioned review activities in the scope of which it will be necessary to redefine the Trans-European road network i.e. the highest level priorities, the so called TEN-T core network, and to concent presidency on transport-related cooperation with neighbouring countries in south-eastern Europe and west Balkans.

The EU objective is to transform independent transport systems of individual countries into an efficient road system, eliminate bottlenecks, etc. She added that no changes will be made regarding transport infrastructure financing, although the rules for getting Community assistance for financing will be clearly defined.

White Paper on transport policy for 2011-2020

The introductory part was followed by a session consecrated to the new White Paper on transport policy until 2020, which bears the title "Roadmap to a single European transport area - towards a competitive and research efficient transport system". The new White Paper was adopted on 28 March 2011. Klaus Schierhackl from Austrian ASFINAG moderated the session and, in his presentation, he placed emphasis on most significant facts from this document, which contains forty concrete initiatives for the next decade, all aimed at creating a competitive transport system.

According to White Paper, € 550 million will be needed to complete the TEN-T network. It is clear that members will have difficulties in finding required funding in their budgets. Due to economic crisis and ageing of European population, it will be necessary to combine private and public sources of financing. Private partners are looking for long-term, stable and reliable conditions that can be expressed through measurable parameters. White Paper supports establishment and setting of framework for development of PPP projects, and encourages participation in the development of new financing instruments for transport sector through delivery of EU project bonds.

Possibilities and sources of financing

In the first block, EP Member Ms. Meissner stressed the fact that White Paper studies and offers solutions for sustainable transport. She added that the EU will need € 250 billion for solving bottlenecks only. Transport projects will be financed from the cohesion fund, via PPP schemes, EU project bonds, and Eurovignette.

It will be indispensible to clearly define the core network and to explore all transport alternatives. The ASECAP Secretary General K. Dionelis underlined that stability is the key word for private investors, and that priorities can not be simply drawn but rather analysed in advance, as market will not support beautiful but unrealistic ideas.

EU project bonds

The representative of the European Investment Bank P. Boeuf, Head of the Road Division, declared that EIB will continue to finance projects of interest to EU, including transport projects. The EIB has been operating for 50 years now and has a lot of experience: it develops and adjusts in accordance with new conditions and circumstances. The EIB has prepared project financing guidelines and requirements (see the web). In project financing, care is taken that projects are economically, socially and environmentally sound, and the selectivity criterion has been raised. He mentioned that the new financing mechanism, the so called EU project bonds, is being considered.

The EU project bonds can be described as a mechanism aimed at increasing credit rating through bonds issued by the company itself. Institutional investors look for long term property in which to invest. However, they are often unable to evaluate projects, and are normally unwilling to take risk. EU project bonds could reconcile the needs of such investors with EU needs regarding infrastructure development.

European experience with concessions

The afternoon hours of the first day of the congress were consecrated to concessions. Successful examples of four European motorway concession companies were presented by representatives from France, Spain, Poland and Ireland. The moderator of this session, Jean Mesqui, COPER I Chairman and Executive Director of the ASFA motorway association, pointed out that prolongation of concession agreements would contribute to the development, recovery and safety of road network.

Bright future of PPP

The discussion that developed after the presentations has pointed to the significance of transparency in concession agreements. It was emphasized that concession agreements are not published at the EU level. As to legal framework for concessions, EU does not intend to prescribe duration of concession agreements. Provision on legal remedies for contract bidders will be incorporated, selection procedure will be simplified, and the notion of risk will be accounted for. The legal framework will therefore not be firm and rigid. Concessions for works constitute a good basis for defining legal framework for service-related concessions (railway, water, air transport, etc.). Public procurement act is currently prepared, and Mr. Boeuf from EIB added in the end that EU has great expectations from concessions as confirmed by the fact that EIB is also financing establishment of the European PPP centre in which all European expertise relating to PPP will be concentrated.

Technical presentations

Technical presentations given on the second day of the congress revealed great capacity of toll motorways to respond to present needs relating to mobility, safety and sustainability and this through application of technical knowledge, namely in the field of ITS and latest toll collection technologies.

The following topics were discussed during four parallel sessions:

  • Traffic safety
  • ITS priorities - deployment cases
  • Sustainable transportation and toll roads contribution
  • Latest tolling applications/technologies

Reports on activities undertaken by ASECAP and its permanent committees were presented in the afternoon hours. This was followed by an overview on the use of EETS in Europe. All participants agree that the work is not completed and that a European platform for EETS application, assisted by EC, should perhaps be formed. It was agreed that a step-by-step approach should be adopted, starting from regional implementation and learning from successful examples of interoperability between France and Spain and Nordic countries. ASFINAG presented situation in Austria which has achieved interoperability with Switzerland, and preparations are underway for doing the same with Germany. Interoperability is currently based on 1 ETC device and 2 agreements, instead of 1 as specified in the Directive on interoperability, but this is precisely the principle of step-by-step implementation.

At the closing session of the congress, J. L. Feito passed on the two-year term in office as ASECAP President to the Austrian representative Klaus Schierhackl, Financial Director of the Austrian motorway company ASFINAG, and invited all participants to attend the 40th ASECAP congress to be held in Turin, Italy on 27-29 May 2012.

All congress papers and national reports are available at www.asecap.com

Soba 2 Stola© 2004-2024 Croatian Association of Toll Motorways Concessionaires - HUKA
All rights reserved.