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Land transportation
One of the main topics concerning freight transport in Italy has been the deployment of funds coming from the Emission Trading System. Despite pleas from the rail freight industry, the Italian Ministry of Transport has now said that they will be used to boost sea-road intermodality.
Fermerci, the largest Italian rail freight association, was asking to use these funds to finance the Norma Merci and Ferrobonus measures, the two main incentives for rail freight operators in Italy. However, the deputy Ministry of Transport Edoardo Rixi recently communicated that the money will be used for the Sea Modal Shift, “also trying to recover funds allocated for 2022 that were not used due to the limits imposed by European rules.”
This theme was especially ‘hot’ in Sicily, where road hauliers announced a five-day work stoppage starting today, 30 September. The sector is arguing that the ETS carbon tax puts a massive burden on operators. On the other hand, this pill might be harder to swallow for the rail freight industry. In the span of a week, the ETS funds were assigned to sea-road intermodality rather than for rail incentives and €55 m were cut from a fund which should have subsidised the purchase of rolling stock.
The money gathered through the ETS carbon credit comes from companies, not only in the transport sector, that have a significant environmental impact. These funds are then distributed among EU member states and are then assigned to various ministries to fund different projects. Assigning a large portion of these funds to the rail freight industry, Fermerci argued, would help the sector boost its performance after a setback registered in 2023.