EU as regards the period for adopting delegated acts - Main contents

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dossier	COM(2017)136 - Amendment of Directive 2010/40/EU as regards the period for adopting delegated acts.
source	COM(2017)136
date	22-03-2017

1. CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL

• Reasons for and objectives of the proposal

Directive 2010/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 July 2010 on the framework for the deployment of Intelligent Transport Systems in the field of road transport and for interfaces with other modes of transport ¹ (the ITS Directive), which entered into force in August 2010, is aimed at accelerating the coordinated EU-wide deployment and use of intelligent transport systems (ITS) in the field of road transport. The Directive requires that specifications be adopted, through delegated acts, for actions in four priority areas. The ITS Directive was one of the first pieces of Union legislation stipulating the use of delegated acts and the power to adopt the delegated acts was conferred on the Commission for a limited period only, until 27 August 2017.

Four delegated acts have been adopted since the entry into force of the ITS Directive. A fifth delegated act has been finalised with Member States’ experts and addresses the provision of EU-wide multimodal travel information services. In addition to interoperability requirements for eCall, the datasharing mechanisms developed in these contexts are contributing significantly to the objectives of the Digital Single Market Strategy ² . The digitisation of the transport sector also contributes to its sustainability.

A digital transport system requires horizontal thinking, across transport modes and industries. Digital technologies build on a layer of data which can be combined into a layer of innovative services and applications. Specifications under the ITS Directive enable the formulation of common functional, technical, organisational and service provisions that facilitate the accessibility and availability of data which are then used to develop this layer of innovative services and applications.

In the context of the recently adopted European strategy on Cooperative Intelligent Transport systems ³ (C-ITS), the Commission is currently working with the Member States’ experts to establish a legal and technical framework to support the deployment of cooperative ITS. This is part of the ITS Directive’s priority area IV and is one of the actions under the Directive for which the Commission intends to use its delegation of power to adopt technical, functional and organisational specifications. In-depth preparatory work is necessary to guarantee that the specifications cover all the aspects required to ensure the harmonised and interoperable deployment of C-ITS in the Union. The work is benefiting from input from and close cooperation with C-ITS platform ⁴ stakeholders, and lessons learnt from C-ITS deployment projects such as Member States’ initiatives under the C-ROADS platform ⁵ . The C-ITS specifications will be fundamental to ensuring the coordinated and rapid deployment of cooperative, connected and automated vehicles in the Union.

Apart from the work on a legal and technical framework to support the deployment of CITS, several other actions in the four ITS Directive priority areas ⁶ have still to be addressed, such as specifications and standards for the continuity and interoperability of traffic and freight management services (priority area II), specifications for other actions relating to ITS road safety and security applications (priority area III), and the definition of necessary measures to integrate different ITS applications on an open in-vehicle platform (priority area IV, paragraph 1.1).

In order that the Commission can adopt further specifications through delegated acts, it is essential that the delegation of power be extended. Furthermore, specifications that have already been adopted may need to be updated to reflect technological progress or lessons learnt from their implementation in the Member States.

The Commission is therefore proposing that the delegation of power be extended by five years from 27 August 2017 and tacitly thereafter for further fiveyear periods, unless the European Parliament or the Council oppose such extension.

• Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area

The only aim of this proposal is to extend the delegation of power to the Commission to adopt delegated acts, without changing the policy objectives or the scope of the ITS Directive.

2. LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY

• Legal basis

Article 91 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

• Subsidiarity (for non-exclusive competence)

The ITS Directive addresses trans-national issues that cannot be satisfactorily addressed by Member States only, such as the interoperability of equipment and strengthening the internal market for ITS services (thereby contributing to competitiveness at global level, jobs and growth).

In accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, the use of a (framework) directive such as the ITS Directive remains one of the most appropriate means of achieving the intended result. The overarching principles and enabling conditions for ITS implementation are given practical effect through specifications developed with the strong involvement of Member State experts. The Commission has also established a European ITS Advisory Group, through which representatives of relevant public and private ITS stakeholders advise it on the business and technical aspects of the implementation and deployment of ITS in the EU.

Specifications adopted by the Commission apply by virtue of Article 5 of the ITS Directive, which acknowledges the right of each Member State to decide on the deployment of ITS applications and services on its territory.

• Proportionality

The Commission’s involvement is limited to the minimum required for achieving the objectives of the proposal and does not go beyond what is necessary for that purpose. It is limited to developing, in support of the Member States and with the assistance of national ITS experts, procedures and specifications in wellidentified priority areas that require a supranational approach.

Not extending the delegation of power to the Commission would endanger the EUwide integrated and coordinated deployment of interoperable ITS in road transport and their interfaces with other transport modes. It would not be practicable or time-efficient for the Council and the European Parliament to adopt all the necessary detailed specifications one by one.

3. RESULTS OF EX-POST EVALUATIONS, STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS

• Ex-post evaluations/fitness checks of existing legislation

A report on the implementation of the ITS Directive in October 2014 ⁷ highlighted the need to extend (from August 2017) the delegation of power enabling the Commission to adopt delegated acts for ITS specifications, and the need, in a second phase, to prepare a possible more extensive revision of the Directive taking account of the constant technical evolution of ITS. This proposal addresses only the extension of the delegation of power.

• Stakeholder consultations

The outcome of the consultation conducted prior to the adoption of the ITS Directive and the ITS Action Plan ⁸ is still considered to be of relevance, e.g. with respect to cross-sector collaboration, the implementation strategy and stakeholder coordination.

Targeted consultations have recently taken place with stakeholder groups, in particular the European ITS Committee and the members of the European ITS Advisory Group. There was general agreement on the need to extend the delegation of power to the Commission to adopt delegated acts.

• Impact assessment

There are no plans for an impact assessment, as the extension does not change the scope and content of the ITS Directive itself.

4. BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS

There are no budgetary implications for the EU budget.

5. OTHER ELEMENTS

• Choice of the legal form of the proposal

The objective of the proposal is to extend the delegation of power to the Commission to adopt delegated acts. Although part of a Directive, the new provisions are not actually addressed to the Member States but to Union institutions. They therefore do not have to be transposed into national legislation and should be adopted in a form of a Decision.

• Detailed explanation of the specific provisions of the proposal

Article 1 extends by five years the power conferred on the Commission to adopt the delegated acts. Subsequently, the power will be tacitly extended for five years at a time unless the European Parliament or the Council oppose such extension.

Article 2 provides for the Decision to enter into force on the 20th day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

• European Economic Area

The proposed act is of EEA relevance.